The Good and the Bad: Their Love Story
by Roanne
Summary: [DmHg] Love does not overcome any limits. Hermione and Draco's final year at Hogwarts might just be exactly the opposite as they thought it would be, with a handful of encounters, friend issues, Death Eaters, and promises. In progress.
1. Prologue

**DISCLAIMER**: I do not own Harry Potter; all original characters and names belong to J.K. Rowling. The plot is mine, however.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**: This story is Draco/Hermione. If you're going to flame me on how I completely ruined the work of J.K. Rowling, or if you're totally against this pairing for whatever reason, I suggest you leave _now_. This is my first time writing a D/HR fic, so don't expect anything extraordinary.

* * *

_Hermione Granger. _

A kindhearted girl; the bookworm of Gryffindor House.

Bushy brown hair; chocolate brown eyes. Known as 'Mudblood'.

But, did anyone see her immensely angry side?

_Draco Malfoy._

A malicious boy; the one most feared.

Platinum blonde hair; pale gray eyes. Known as 'Twitchy Little Ferret'.

But, did anyone see his sweet side?

_Perhaps._

You may think that they would be the last two people ever to fall into the binding spell of love.

You may think that they don't care about one another.

You think. But maybe you're wrong.

Too long now they've been watching each other, whether anyone noticed or not.

As with all love, there are minor – well, _somewhat_ minor complications.

Hermione couldn't stand such antagonistic behavior.

Draco had his problems with blood and whatnot.

She was the low-born and high-minded; he was the high-born and low-minded.

Were a Pureblood and a Mudblood ever compatible?

Well, they were about to change that.


	2. Encounter

_Hermione_

* * *

Once I was convinced that this was the start of Year Seven, I was enticed to give it my all; to thrive at its end. I met up with Harry and the Weasleys at Kings Cross Station. Although the same familiar process of shaking hands and asking last-minute questions seemed to take forever, I dealt with it. Perhaps the opening of a magical year wasn't as exciting as its middle.

"Hello Harry, hello Ron," I greeted, running up to them, feeling my purse bounce under my arm. "How have you two been?"

Harry let out a wearisome sigh. "I'm just glad that I'm back to where I belong. I can't _stand_ another long summer with the Dursleys."

"Why haven't you been writing, 'Mione?" Ron asked, popping a piece of chocolate into his mouth. "Harry and I have noticed."

I bit my lip. Every time now, I've been trying to convince them to write letters over the break, and as with all of them, I wrote back. But this time I had completely forgotten, due to the recent struggles of my parents' new jobs. They were now officially doctors, and the whole career of being dentists just faded away.

"Oh, sorry, my mum didn't let me write as often because I had to help her with things," I said matter-of-factly, just in case it seemed like I was lying. "My parents had been so busy with their new jobs I had to take care of the house more than I usually did."

"As often? As _often_?" Ron swallowed a piece of chocolate before making another remark. "You didn't write at all!"

The look in Harry's eyes meant that he had detected the irksome tone in Ron's voice as well, so I allowed him to speak first.

"Why are you so concerned?" Harry and I started to laugh at the facial expression on Ron.

He opened his mouth and attempted to speak, but he just kept shaking his head. "Whatever," was his response.

It was now 10:59. The train left at exactly 11:00 O'clock, so we said our final farewells to the Weasleys and boarded the train.

The passageway was crammed with students and was very difficult to get through. Being in-between Harry and Ron, I tried to keep moving.

"Say, let's go find a compartment with Ginny and Neville," Harry spoke more loudly than usual, due to the bickering of the students around us. "And maybe Luna will be there too."

"Oh, um, Harry," I kept walking until there was a clearing in the passageway. Ron stood by me. "About that…well, Ron and I are still prefects, so we're going to have to go to a different compartment."

The dismayed emotion met Harry once again. "Oh, right," he started walking away from the two of us. "Don't worry about it. See you later."

"Bye," Ron said before turning to me. "Well, let's go."

I followed him all the way until we were stopped by a woman. The trolley lady.

"Whereabouts are you headed, dears?"

Thinking quickly and not wanting to get into any trouble (although I didn't see what I have done wrong), I flashed her an amiable smile. "We're heading towards the Prefects' compartments. Excuse us."

When I tried to get past her once more, she stopped me again. I started to get impatient.

"Sorry, dear, but you're headed the wrong way. It seems that this year an unexpectedly large batch of first years had arrived, so we had to shorten up the space a bit. The Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff Prefects are to sit in one compartment, and the-"

"_Slytherins and Gryffindors_," Ron finished.

"-Yes, the Slytherins and Gryffindors. The door is right there to the left." she pointed behind us before wandering off.

Ron and I walked towards the door quite slowly, each step gradually making its way there. When we stood directly in front, we could see blurred figures inside.

"Ready?" He asked.

"Well, I don't know if we really have to 'prepare' for anything. It's just Malfoy and that Parkinson girl; we have nothing to worry about."

"If you say so." He opened the door.

* * *

_Draco_

* * *

I knew something was wrong when Pansy had stopped stroking my hair.

"What is it?" I asked, demanding an answer.

She didn't speak. She remained there, completely frozen. When I arose from her lap, I turned to her. Pansy was wearing quite an angry mask on her face that didn't seem to come off. "Pansy, are you-"

Then I realized what she was glaring at. In front of our door stood Weasley and that Filthy Mudblood. But I wasn't afraid of them, no, never – they were merely particularly annoying.

"Well, well," I started. "If it isn't the Weasel and the Mudblood."

Weasley furrowed his brows at me. How I loathed him. "Shut up, Malfoy."

Before I could throw another insult at him, Pansy beat me to it.

"And _why_ do you think you can sit here? Don't you have your own stupid friends to prance around?" I must say, I was quite impressed on how quick she could think of things. I smirked.

"Wipe that smile off your face, _Parkinson_," Granger snapped. "We wouldn't sit here in our right minds. Apparently there isn't enough room for individual compartments so we were ordered to sit here." She sat down opposite of me; Weasley to her right.

My face grew cold and I let anger take over me. "Don't think you can tell us what to do, Mudblood."

She shot me that revolting smartass look. "Whenever did I say I was going to?"

Five minutes. Five irritating long minutes of silence passed after her question. _Whenever did I say I was going to?_ Ugh. I hated how she had to be here, out of all places.

Pansy seemed to run out of insults as well; something unusual. I wondered if something was all right; if something was troubling her. But oh well. I'll leave her problems to her.

Well, it couldn't get any worse than this.

The trolley woman rapidly slid open our door, sending out an ear-piercing screech. Pansy and Granger reached for their ears and covered them.

"Sorry about that. I'm here to inform you that there is another compartment however, with two seats available. Two of you can proceed there."

_Finally_. I stood up from my seat and Pansy held my hand. But, the lady remained where she was, blocking the doorway.

"Excuse me-" Pansy began.

"-But it really would be better if one student from each house would go over there," she interrupted. "Well, to patrol things. So one Slytherin and one Gryffindor can go. Girl and boy."

_Girl and boy!_ That means I had to be stuck with Granger and Pansy had to suffer with Weasley.

"You," the woman pointed to Weasley. "And you," following Pansy. "You two may go into the compartment with the first years. Move along, go, now." She 'shooed' them away.

Before reaching completely out of my sight, Pansy waved farewell in such an effortless way. I then closed the door of the compartment, sitting down, across from Granger.

"What?" I queried; she was glaring so fiercely at me I had to ask.

She decreased her infuriation slightly and it toned down to a pout. "Nothing."

Did she really think she could convince me to give in? No, I wouldn't lose, not to a Mudblood like her. I thought about how Pansy would be enduring the annoyance of sitting with Weasley. Pity.

Twenty minutes passed with complete, uninterrupted silence. I grew tired of this. Well, we had to at least talk about _something_, right? Even if was with someone like her.

"So, how's Potter doing?" sniggering, I squinted so that my eyes were but slits. "Still going up for all the fame and glory?" _That Potter. Always up for all the attention._

"I don't have to tell you anything, _Malfoy_," she put such enthusiasm in my name is rubbed off on me. "Actually, why don't you figure it out yourself?"

Furiously widening my eyes, I stared at her. "Shut up and don't talk to me like that, you wench," I sat back in my seat, crossing my arms, trying to frighten her.

But it wasn't working. She just sat there, looking stern but calm, staring at her feet. A bell rang from outside the compartment.

"Anything from the trolley?" The woman outside bellowed.

Granger ascended and walked out of the compartment to get some candy; glowering at me before she left the compartment.

Well, she was beautiful, but as I mentioned before – particularly annoying.


	3. Ponderings

_Hermione_

* * *

At last. The castle's silhouette looked more welcoming than ever, and getting off that bothersome train ride relieved me. I walked into a carriage with Harry and Ron. 

"So," Harry began, his fingers tapping on his knee. "How was the train ride for you two?"

When I opened my mouth to tell the tale, Ron leaped out of his seat immediately, causing the carriage to shake weakly.

"Hermione and I ran into Malfoy and _Parkinson_," he confirmed. "And guess what? That hag forced me to go off into _another_ compartment and sit with Parkinson for the rest of the train ride." Ron had put so much eagerness in it that Harry was left bewildered.

"I see," Harry rolled his eyes at the window as rained poured down; dancing on the glass. "Well, mine wasn't that bad. Quite boring, though. Ginny left to a different compartment with her friends and I just sat there while Luna and Neville talked the whole time." He pressed his face against the window to see if we were approaching the school.

For a couple of moments nobody spoke. Inside, I really couldn't wait to let out what I thought about my experience of being trapped in a compartment with _Malfoy_. I really was eager, but I didn't want to burst it out. Harry and Ron would probably think I've gone mad.

But, it seemed we arrived at the school before any of them could ask any questions. Sure, it was quite depressing, but I had high hopes for dinnertime. My stomach was roaring (candy couldn't always do the trick) and perhaps, they would ask then.

Once inside, most of us power walked towards the Great Hall, wound up to eat. The large, familiar doors towered over us and this time, Gryffindor table was to the far left. Harry, Ron, and I sat in the middle of it, as always.

The Ravenclaw students carried on to the table at the far right. The Hufflepuffs sat down at the table closest to the Ravenclaws. That could only mean one thing.

Yet again, the_ Slytherins_ would have to be the closest.

A freakish amount first years crammed into the middle of it all, jumping up and down with glee to get sorted. The noise level was rising at such an incredible speed everyone started shushing another.

"Your attention please," McGonagall tapped her fork against her goblet, causing silence to overcome the room. She, as for this year, was Headmistress. "The Sorting Ceremony will begin as of now."

Another group of taller students seemed to arrive late and began taking their seats. The Slytherins.

To my surprise, Malfoy managed to claim the seat right behind me, along with Pansy Parkinson. I felt a little jolt run up my spine for some unexplainable reason.

Ha, I wasn't _scared_ of him. I know he tried to let all fear him, but as for me, he was being witty. But still, I was acting quite strange.

McGonagall rolled out an unbelievably long roll of parchment and began reading out names. The Sorting Hat refused to sing his song due to the large crowd of students.

One by one, the students keenly took of the hat and ran to their House table.

"_Gryffindor!"_

"_Hufflepuff!"_

"_Ravenclaw!"_

"_Slytherin!"_

I remember my experience, which made way to the grin that formed on my face. Following that Harry asked me why I looked so happy, I replied with, "Nothing."

The mouth-watering meals appeared on the table; "oohs" and "ahhs" emerging from the first years. I rapidly reached for some mashed potatoes, twirling my fork in it.

Hogwarts food was indeed delicious, but in my opinion, awfully heavy. That was an exception for now – I grew ravenous and started eating straight away. Ron was chewing and swallowing so ferociously I was concerned if he was going to choke.

"Psst, _Mudblood_." Hissed a girl from behind.

Honestly. Why now out of all moments to bother me? I rotated anyway to face Malfoy and; _I could've never guessed_, Pansy.

Ron and Harry had seen me turn around and were extremely focused. Harry had already stopped eating due to countless boxes of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans on the train.

"What do you want, Parkinson?" I asked pathetically. Using her last name, I hoped, would give me the illusion that I had no interest in talking to her. Which was true.

It took Pansy a couple of moments to realize that she was the one that called me in the first place. Malfoy cleared his throat to snap her back into reality. She reapplied that fake malicious look and started to speak.

"Listen, if for whatever reason I am to be left stranded with that irritating boyfriend of yours, _you_ will be the one regretting it."

Boyfriend? Ha-ha. Ronald wasn't my boyfriend; just a really close friend. One of my only close friends. Still, I wasn't surprised she thought that, because the whole dilemma involving Lavender Brown last year seemed to convince a few. Well, I was in love with him _a little_, but I kept that to myself.

"Alright then, Pansy, I will put alertness to that," I sipped some pumpkin juice before finishing my sentence. "So I guess I'll say the same – if I'm ever left with yours."

Pansy turned a very fair shade of pink and Malfoy, who had been drinking, spilled a tiny amount all over his robes, causing Ron and Harry to burst out laughing. I guessed they weren't really dating as everyone said they would; by now Malfoy had turned crimson in embarrassment as well. Before turning around to resume my eating, Malfoy grimaced at me.

Usually it would mean absolutely nothing to me if he shot me a dirty look, but this time I felt it jab straight at my heart. But, _why_? That question repeated itself in my head for the rest of dinner; as I pondered its meaning.

"Oh, Hermione how was the train ride for you? I forgot to ask." Harry spoke.

"I had to sit with Malfoy," feeling pleased with myself for a reason I did not know, I spoke with a stylish tone. "He called me a wench, asked me why you wanted all this fame and glory, and I just couldn't wipe that annoying smirk off his face." So I said that.

"Whatever," Harry sighed with boredom. "He's like that." I shrugged and stared at my empty plate.

It seemed that I finished my dinner rather quickly. Drowsiness had entered my system and I had the undying need to go to sleep.

"I'm going to turn in for now," I mumbled, yawning. "I'm pretty tired."

Ron refilled his goblet with pumpkin juice and raised his eyebrows at me. "Tired? _Already_?"

"Goodnight, Hermione," Harry waved. "See you tomorrow."

"Bye." And with that I left the Great Hall, pacing towards the Gryffindor Common Room, growing fatigue from walking.

Seeing I was the only one in the Common Room, I went to the Girls Dormitory instantly and changed into my pajamas.

I stood in front of the mirror, taking my brush and running it through my bushy hair. Ugh. As always, this was as good as it was going to get. My hand gripped my hair as I tried it into a ponytail.

Jumping into bed, I couldn't wait for tomorrow. The first day of arriving at Hogwarts every year was _never_ as thrilling as the second.

But, that night I had a dream that left me puzzled.

It wasn't like one of those completely impossible dreams; it was realistic. I was walking down the corridors on my way to breakfast, waving at fellow Gryffindors. Just like everyday; this-and-that – the usual.

Before I could take my seat and start reading, two hands covered my eyes, temporarily eliminating everything in my view.

I didn't know who it was, until after the dream.

Giggling I turned around, wrapping my arm around their waist. The funny thing was, it wasn't Ron. It didn't turn out to be Harry, either. Nor was it anyone I would be considered 'friends' with.

The truth could be frightening sometimes. It was Malfoy, laughing with pleasure; his hand on my shoulder. He was tousling with my hair.

"Stop it," I chuckled. But I could feel the burning desire inside of me asking him to pull me into an embrace.

Could it be that…that…

Dreams were a way for me to escape the real world and to swim in the unexpected; to explore every inch your imagination could take you.

But after I had that dream, I didn't think dreams were to actually happen. Malfoy. Out of all people.

Although it did leave me laughing happily when I woke up.

**Please give it some reviews, I will be able to update faster that way. Although I always have the temptation to finish a chapter a day. Hehe.**


	4. Pansy Concerned

_Draco_

* * *

At Breakfast, the scrambled eggs and toast grew old and dull.

In fact, I could compare my life to the bright yellow eggs and the crisp bread. Everything was developing into something uninspiring, something so typical – something too _routine_.

What I meant was, I needed something new. I was sick of this everyday schedule and was obviously desperate for something to jump out at me; for anything to keep me occupied.

Crabbe, Goyle, Theodore and Blaise were rather unentertaining themselves. Every now and then they would tell me about something terrible that has overcome Potter and them, but really, I didn't care.

As for Pansy, she was breaking the limit between 'friends'. She was like a magnet to me; one minute she's gossiping on and on and the next she's muddling with my hair. I haven't grown sick of her like I have with anything else; she probably was the only person I would consider as a friend and not as an acquaintance.

But, not like I was mad at her. That's just another thing that wasn't _new_.

People have thought we've been dating for a while. Wouldn't blame them; it was probably because she was my date during the Yule Ball. To my surprise, Pansy hasn't given me any clue of asking me to be her boyfriend. And if she was, she was doing fairly well hiding it.

For now I stopped revolving around the thoughts in my head and went back to the real world. Younger students were racing to the tables, claiming the last piece of French toast or looking for someone to converse with.

I haven't grown hungry in a while. I think I don't even remember the last time I've eaten a complete meal. Due to stress or not, I hoped no one would notice.

"Draco, you're getting pale."

She tapped me on the shoulder and she looked bothered by the sight of me. Seeing that troubled me as well. I didn't like Pansy worrying about my problems as it so I tried to be incredulous of it.

"Really?"

She pulled up my sleeve, my Dark Mark revealing slightly, and I felt her warm fingers trace across my cold skin.

But it didn't flinch when she touched me. Most of the time I would, considering that I was, maybe, in love with her?

"Draco, really. What's gotten into you?"

I couldn't hear her voice. Instead, I was dozing off somewhere, staring at the_ last_ girl anyone would expect me to.

"Hello? Draco? Hellloooo…"

She started waving her hand in front of my face as if doing so would cease my constant gazing at Granger. Yes, _Granger_. So I was staring at her, so what?

"Draco…what are you staring at?"

Pansy's voice sent me back to where I was. "Oh, nothing."

"Nothing."

"Yes, nothing."

"You can't be staring at nothing." She was getting to me. I could feel her growing suspicious.

My eyes darted from the Gryffindor table to some fancy tapestry on the wall, and my face turned slightly. A response to her remark was slowly escaping its way out of my mouth, but she prevented it from happening. She put her hands on my head, slowly reverting my head back it its previous direction.

"There. You were looking at something there." She was whispering in my ear and this time, I felt guilty for staring at Granger in the first place. Why was I staring at her anyway?

"No I wasn't. Don't worry about me, Pansy." Gently but swiftly I pushed her hand away; causing her to put on that dubious worrisome mask. "I'm not hungry. I'll see you later."

I waved her goodbye, but she didn't wave back. Perhaps I've hurt her feelings. I knew that, or as some people tell me, that girls' feelings were delicate. Pansy, however, was as fragile as a flower. Turning my head away made me feel sober.

The clock chimes went into play and the students shuffled around the Great Hall and into the corridors. I didn't even bother to look where I was going; the only thing I could think about now was how to deal with Pansy.

"_Ouch, Seamus, watch where you're going!"_

"_Oh, sorry about that Hermione."_

The name itself made me come to a complete stop in the middle of the crowded passageways.

But I knew that this had to be ridiculous. You could say that I preferred Pansy over Granger (which would be correct), but hearing Pansy's name didn't make freeze me. It didn't pile apprehension; nor did it make me feel in any way, nervous. So, why?

There were limits for me. Purebloods and Mudbloods never were to be together – there was no law stating so; but it was just – _wrong_.

Too late. My feet were planted on the hard ground too long and someone bumped into me, causing me to collapse with additional weight on top of me.

"Hey, you, you better get off of me right now –" I started.

A girl with a fluffy mane of bushy brown hair had fallen on me with eyes a fair shade of brown. Her hands were flat on the ground, and her legs were tangled with my own.

"Dammit, you Mudblood, get off of me," I stood up, sending off away dust from my robes. I realized I was staring at her but somehow I couldn't stop.

A completely unexpected response was thrown at me with incredible speed.

"Sorry about that, Malfoy, but maybe we should _both_ watch where we're going." I didn't know if she said 'both' with such feeling on purpose or not.

"Shut it, wench," was all I could say.

"Be quiet yourself, _Malfoy_."

Before I could say another word, she strutted off towards the classrooms. My face was producing such intense heat and I could swear I was blushing. But no, I don't normally turn red. Not for something as foolish as that.

When I tried to let that situation turn into the past, something shiny caught my eye. It was on my shoulder. My neck weakly rotated to the side and picked it up.

A strand of Granger's hair. The pure shade of brown dominated the lighter highlight. Several students stared at me obnoxiously for a while. Well, perhaps you might, if you saw someone gazing at a strand of hair awfully long.

The clock chime's tune began again, meaning I was late. I got to my feet and sped towards Potions, the strand of her hair slowly descending to the ground.

Hermione wouldn't someone that I _hated_ – possibly I just disliked her. Most of the time when she's not smart-mouthing me I treat her like she was just another student, another Gryffindor, another girl. Maybe it was her smarts. Maybe I did want to be more knowledgeable at things. Maybe she became different.

Well, one of them had to be true. One of those had to cover up for the reason I used her first name.


	5. Eclipsed Feelings

_Hermione _

* * *

Another day of Potions; another day of review. 

I've already learned all about Veritaserum even _before_ my fifth year. As of right now, Professor Snape was discussing about the properties of it; and me, knowing it all, grew bored and rested my chin on my hand.

My mind was somewhat preoccupied already, though. But this time, it wasn't about studies or school. Not about plans or life going on back home.

I was reliving the incident that overcame me before Potions; when I bumped into Malfoy. Fell on him, to be more accurate.

Never in my life did I feel as pathetic as I did. Sure, I let out some things that made it seem like I didn't care. _"Be quiet yourself, Malfoy."_ I said before.

Of course it wasn't my fault that I crashed into him in the first place, Seamus was probably hyped up from Breakfast and wasn't looking where he was going – resulting to everything that happened after.

Still, it was something to think about. It's not everyday that I feel bad for bumping into someone who would be considered 'beyond my reach'. Not like I _wanted_ him, you could say that I was just lost in my daydreams.

Besides, even if I did fancy him (I'm not confessing anything), it wouldn't be the same for Malfoy. He was a Pureblood and I was…Muggle-born. I was pretty sure Pansy would have claimed him to herself already.

Thinking Snape would catch me not paying attention; I tried to put an end to my constant daydreaming; for today. Or to the least, in Potions.

Harry and Ron didn't sit anywhere near me. Harry was at the very front of the room next to Luna; Ron was in the very back with Neville. I was placed in the middle of the room, aside that irritating Milicent Bulstrode, who fortunately wasn't here.

Malfoy sat a desk away from me, next to Pansy. Even if I just tilted forward and looked to my left a bit, I could see his full face, his pale skin, his delicate blonde hair, and those soft gray eyes.

No, no, _no_. I shouldn't be thinking about Malfoy. Not when I had feelings for Ron. But I wonder, is it possible to love two people with the same amount of delight?

Nevertheless, what was I thinking? I wasn't in love with Malfoy. Was I?

You could call him attractive; just ask the squealing bunch of Slytherin girls. He was a malicious, cold, power-hungry beast that would do anything to have his way. I also noticed that although he still wasn't particularly 'polite' to me, he didn't rankle me and pull my strings as much as he used to.

Even the most merciless person had an appealing side, right? Whether it was deep, deep down – I know it was in him. Somewhere.

I turned to look at him. He was deep in conversation with Pansy, while she cackled silently to whatever humor he presented to her, possibly sarcasm.

There was a part of me that wished that I could hold a civilized conversation with him without being called 'Mudblood' or 'Filthy'. And for the other side, I felt at fault. I didn't belong with him. Ron would be deeply hurt even if I said all these things to him.

Unfortunately I gazed on the subject too long. Little did I notice that Pansy was done speaking and he turned to face me; my eyes directly focused on his.

Still, I could get completely lost in those eyes of his and not even know what I was doing. You could say that…

Surprisingly I wasn't the one to turn away first. He rapidly turned and I could guarantee that he was blushing. I was reddening myself and I decided to drop this and to pay attention for the rest of the class.

But, was it a mistake that I wanted to keep looking at him?

_

* * *

Draco

* * *

_

What was Granger up to, staring at me so attentively like that? I could feel myself stiffen and my insides flush. I was completely clueless at why I felt so strange. I didn't know why, and neither did Pansy.

Maybe it was her beauty. There were things I _had_ to say about Granger.

Overall, she was a know-it-all stubborn girl, let alone so desperate to correct everything. She had a soft spot for her friends and I could see that she got jealous quite easily.

I didn't have any intention to think about her so frequently; so seriously. It just happened.

I also noticed that my passionate hatred for her has calmed down a bit. A lot, actually. She, after all, had changed. Her hair had grown less bushy and framed her face quite nicely. That attitude inside of her seemed to become less determined about her studies.

Gods, what was this feeling? Dare I even admit what I thought it was?

Could it be that…_I had some interest in her_? That for one brief moment I liked the fact that she had descended on top of me?

However, she did have Weasley there for her. Most knew about the whole crisis going on last year about Lavender Brown; everyone could see that she was insanely jealous about Lavender getting her hands on her "Won-won".

There was no way in Hell that I would tell Pansy about this. Even during the Yule Ball, when I thought that Granger actually looked quite stunning in her dress, she went ballistic. Of course I _had_ to apologize shortly after, but that didn't mean that my opinion about Granger changed.

"And so, this being the end of class, what exactly does Veritaserum do, Mr. Malfoy?"

Snape asked me and I was too gripped into what I was thinking to even knew he called me.

"Mr. Malfoy?"

"To force the drinker to spill their innermost secrets."

"Excellent. 10 points to Slytherin."

I smirked, proud of myself. Pansy winked at me faintly, but I slanted forward slightly to look at Granger's reaction.

She was smiling. Actually smiling. It astonished me greatly to see her grin in such a pleased way; at me. Never have I seen her look impressed at _me_.

"That's it for today, class dismissed. No go."

Potions was indeed my favorite class, but it grew dreary. I stood from my seat and walked towards the door, only to feel Pansy's arm clutched so tightly around mine.

"Draco, I am impressed," Pansy said in a flirtatious tone. "So, been studying, haven't you?"

I'd leave that question for someone else to answer, for Pansy didn't seem to be expecting one.

There was, actually, yesterday.

"_Mr. Malfoy, why are you here so late? You should be in your Common Room." Snape said strictly._

"_Sir, I was wondering what topic we would be covering tomorrow?"_

_"I do not know why you are so curious about this, but tomorrow we will be conversing the properties of Veritaserum."_

"_That was all I needed. Goodnight, sir." And with that I closed the door of the Potions Classroom, heading back to the Boys Dormitory._

And still, I wonder, how impressed Granger felt.

Quite impressed.

* * *

**Please give it some reviews! Thank you for your time. :)**


	6. Even Slytherins Need Love

**This part is told in 3rd person point-of-view, so neither Draco or Hermione are telling the story. Only for the beginning part. After so, we have our own little narrative from Pansy :) Enjoy!**

* * *

The silky blonde strands arose fromthe boy'spillow when morning called; the sunlight peeping through the windows caused him to squint his eyes and jump out of bed.

Draco yawned as a hint of sleep still lurked somewhere inside him. He stretched his arms and changed into his uniform sluggishly.

_What a night_, he thought._ Is it really morning already?_ Draco yawned once more.

The Boys Dormitory was completely deserted as he made his way out. Several Slytherin comrades still walked about the Common Room. Draco refused to go down all the way to Great Hall for he, obviously, didn't get enough sleep.

He placed his hand on his temple and sat down on a deep green couch. There he remained half-asleep, his eyes darting from one person to another, finding the atmosphere completely unamusing.

"Good morning," a familiar voice called. "How was your night?"

Draco turned his head to confront Pansy, who seemed rather hyper as she brushed her short dark hair.

"I didn't get enough sleep," he groaned, scooting over to allow Pansy to sit beside him. "You seem... _jumpy_."

Pansy laughed slightly as if Draco had told her something absolutely comical.

"Do I? Oh, it's nothing. I just got a little extra sleep, is all."

"I see."

"I'm going to go down to Breakfast. Want to come with me?"

"Maybe I'll come later. You go on ahead."

He expected Pansy to instantly rush down to the Great Hall. Perhaps, that was what he _wanted_ to happen. Instead she came to a complete stop and placed her brush on the table, kneeling directly in front of him.

She gently brought his hand away from his head and placed her own on his forehead.

"Draco, you're worrying me. What's the matter with you nowadays?"

He looked at her questionably and let out a scoff.

"What in Merlin's name are you talking about?"

Pansy caught the sharp tone in his voice but continued to speak, no matter how much she hesitated to.

"Recently, I mean... you haven't been eating...you're not getting enough sleep...you barely talk to me anymore..."

Draco knew that in fact, Pansy might be able to see right through him.

"I haven't been ignoring you, Pansy." He tapped the space on the couch next to him, gesturing Pansy to relax there for a while. Hoping it would alter with her mood immediately, he wrapped his hand around her waist, pulling her closer. But, it didn't entice Pansy as much as he had planned it to.

"Anything else?"

Pansy faintly reddened. "There is, also the fact that you're answering half the questions in class. I mean, whatever happened to 'education is downright witty'? I think that you're even beating _Granger_ in that act-"

"What about Hermione?"

* * *

_Pansy_

* * *

Never did I hear Draco address her as 'Hermione'. It was always 'Mudblood'. Wasn't it?

Clearly something was wrong here. I, after all, have noticed him watching her. _Far_ too long.

Yes. I grew jealous. Tangled in the webs of anxiety. Some envious emotion had burrowed its way through and found me. But I didn't care what others would've thought. The Parkinsons were, basically, a rather coveting family.

"...Nothing," Entirely fed up with him, I arose. "Whatever. I'm going to Breakfast."

I thought he would prevent me from escaping the Common Room this time, but he didn't even bother. _Too preoccupied with other things...other girls. _I found it infinitely ridiculous that Draco thought bringing me towards his body would persuade me to forget about it.

Such manipulation.

Milicent accompanied me on my way there, she seemed particularly cheerful this morning.

"Pansy, you look down. Anything happen with Draco?"

"Draco? Haha...what about _him_?"

After taking our usual seats at the Slytherin table, Millicent spoke as she filled her cup with some pumpkin juice. "I suppose you two had a row earlier...?"

I popped a small grape in my mouth, tasting the tangy juice wander inside my mouth. I took the time to chew it down as I came up with a response.

"No...it's nothing like that," My foot tapped and my fork spun in my scrambled eggs simultaneously. "He's just troubling me."

"Oh. Okay." Millicent rummaged through her bag; pulling out a comb and a hair tie and our conversation seemed to come to an end.

Convinced that I wasn't hungry anymore, my spoon and fork clattered on my plate. So I thought about a few things.

About Draco.

About Granger.

And...about me.

If that Mudblood was purposely after him, she should've known better not to mess around. And same goes for those Slytherin girls.

That irritating prat.

Everyone, well, _hopefully _everyone - knew that in fact, I probably was the only girl out there willing to give my heart to Draco.

Because, if you decided to be with him, you're putting your heart at great risk. He wasn't my boyfriend _yet_, but I've been through enough to prove that correct.

There were times when he was breathtaking, charming, sweet - but that rarely took part anymore. Now he was cold, ignorant - the way he always was before we became friends.

After all, _even Slytherins needed love._

Well, enough dreaming for today. I got up and threw my bag over my shoulder, heading over to class earlier than usual.

Just when I was under the enormous arch of the doors of the Great Hall, I crashed into someone.

"Hey, watch it, you-"

Then I froze.

* * *

_Hermione_

* * *

Really. What ever happened to etiquette and people being polite nowadays?

Bumping into Pansy Parkinson clearly wasn't something good, and anyone with eyes could see that she was precisely in a cranky mood this morning.

"Oh. It's _you_," she snarled, furrowing her eyebrows greatly.

I wasn't quite sure what she meant by that. Besides, whatever did I do to her?

"Excuse me?"

"Don't play dumb with me, you pathetic little Mudblood. You-"

"Okay, Pansy, just shut up. _Shut up_ if you're not even going to tell me why you're mad at me in the first place-"

"Don't tell me to shut up! You know exactly what I'm talking about, about Draco and everything." She snapped, taking in a deep breath before crossing her arms.

"Draco? What do I have to do with _Draco_!"

Her arms moved from across her chest to her hips, firmly placed there. The anger cooled down a bit, her lip seemed to lower and she appeared more nervous than mad.

"You mean...you...haven't noticed?"

"Noticed? Noticed what?"

Pansy walked over to two chairs by a window in the corridor, sitting down on the left. I sat on the right. This was quite peculiar; I don't usually sit next to an unfriendly Slytherin. Really, who in their right mind would?

"Over the past few days...I've noticed some dramatic change in Draco. The look in his face has softened. Something even _I_ couldn't do. I mean, haven't you seen him..._watch_ you?"

I felt my throat prickle and my heart grow heavy. "He's been...doing _that_? But whatever happened to me being a completely helpless Mudblood? I thought that he had that whole theory about Purebloods and Mudbloods, didn't he?"

Pansy brought her legs up and sat like a curled ball, hiding from the world. "I don't know. He doesn't tell me things anymore," she gently slapped her palms on her knees. "I don't think he even does anything with me anymore. If he's in love with you, then he could just...just _leave_."

I could see that she was beginning to cry.

"If...if he loved me? ...That's _impossible_!" Normally I wouldn't try to encourage Pansy, but she was feeling down; the tears explained all. Even if she was a nasty Slytherin girl, even she needed some sympathy. "I mean...he's always been with you, right?"

"I guess. But if he's ready to move on to other things, other people, then he could just go ahead," Pansy wiped a tear away before it tried to plummet down to the unknown. "Let me just tell you this...if you are willing to be his girlfriend, or something like that, just...be careful."

I gladly accepted Pansy's advice. But...to be his girlfriend? "Okay...I'll keep that in mind."

"Good." She arose and headed down the corridor towards her class, but before she left, she turned around. "Hey, one more thing."

"Yes?"

"This doesn't mean that we're necessarily friends, but here's something. I'm going to call you Hermione, not Mudblood. Okay?"

"Sure."

And with that, she vanished into the hallways.

Maybe, just maybe - Slytherins weren't always this cold-hearted. Maybe they were misunderstood people.

Now that I've dealt with Pansy, it was time to deal with Draco. Not only Draco, but Ron as well.

What would he think if he knew what was happening?

I might not get off so easily as I thought I would. But it was worth a shot.

* * *

**Yeah well...I had to put Pansy in there _somewhere_. And that's it for Chapter 5. I will upload Chapter 6 once I get enough reviews. Hope you liked it:)**

**-Roanne**


	7. In Witching Hour

**So...seems to me that most of you people out there aren't fond of Pansy... Well, that's okay! I've kept your recommendations in mind and bring to you chapter 6! Hope you like it!

* * *

**

_Hermione

* * *

_

"Hermione! What is _wrong_ with you? Do you realize what you're doing? You've gone MAD!"

I really don't know how longer I could stand this. I was in the Common Room, and Ron was screaming at me; _screaming_. I had just told him everything.

"No, Ron, please don't overreact! I didn't mean to offend you with what I said, I-"

"Hermione, _do you know _what this means? I mean, we're talking about Malfoy. MALFOY! The same person who was been tormenting us for _what, _is it, six years now? And it's about to become seven! I don't see how you-"

"Ron, just stop. Stop for a bit."

"But Hermione-"

"Please. Just...please." From the door to the couch, I walked, sitting myself down with ease, hoping that the soft plush pilllows would comfort me. The only things I could see and hear were my tears interfearing with my sight; I could see a blur of Ron. And the crackling from the fireplace kept the room nice and toasty.

But inside, I felt cold and misunderstood.

Maybe I told Ron all about everything too soon.

"Ron...maybe...maybe people _change_," I started, trying to choke back the tears that were indeed making its way up. "Haven't you noticed that...Draco hasn't been acting so foolish like he was previously? Don't you think he might have...softened up?"

Ron plopped himself down a chair before bursting out again. "No, Hermione! I don't think he has _softened up_. Not even a bit! Maybe he has _to you_, but he's trying to...who knows what he's trying to do! Are you telling me that you're in _love_ with Malfoy or something?"

What was I supposed to say back? Even I was afraid to tell him. I didn't know if my reply was the lie or the truth itself, but it was worth a try.

"No, I am not _in love with him_," I began. I could feel my voice quaver and crack for reasons I did not know. "Ron. I'm just telling you that perhaps Malfoy is just...I don't know, misunderstood?" I hicupped.

Ron let out a tiresome sigh. "Perhaps, Hermione...whatever you think...but I'm just...concerned. I don't want you getting hurt or anything."

"Hurt?" I did not understand. What did he mean? "What do you mean by..._hurt_?"

"Malfoy's not particularly 'safe', 'Mione...he's pretty dangerous," he laid his arms across his chest. "Look at him. He's a _Death Eater_!"

I had completely forgotten that Draco had become a Death Eater. Just the thought of it sent a shiver up my spine.

"Don't worry Ron, I'll be careful. Now, it's getting late. I'm heading off to bed."

"Whatever you say, Hermione." He jumped off his chair and ran up the stairs of the Boys' Dormitory, turning back before closing the door. "Goodnight, Hermione."

"Goodnight, Ronald."

So his door clicked.

Like I really _was_ going to go to bed, it was after all, only 9:30PM.

But if I was going to leave the Common Room, I didn't want to be seen prancing around the school, right? Exactly.

I crept towards the Boys Dormitory. Once I opened the door, I tiptoed to Harry's bed, keeping a watchful eye out to see if anyone was still awake.

Although I found the sight of Neville snoring absolutely humorous, I didn't even think about laughing; but I was convulsed with laughter.

Towering over Harry's silent body, I eyed him cautiously to make sure that he was sound asleep, which he was.

Then I bent over and started to search under his bed.

_Where is it, where is it..._

Rummaging through the all the miscellaneous junk the laid there for God-knows-how-long, my hands continued to search.

I felt a soft, velvety cloth inbetween my fingers.

_Found it._

Harry's Invisibility Cloak.

Not making a single peep, I pulled it out.

Unfortunately when the cloak ran across the floor, something that seemed to be Harry's pencilcase spilled its contents all over the ground, causing clattering noises.

Reaching for the Invisibility Cloak, I attempted to conceal myself with it.

The only thing was, it wasn't in my hands.

It was on the ground. I probably dropped it when the sound of the pencils startled me.

And to make it all worse, Ron tossed and turned in his bed uncomfortably. I was pretty sure he was going to awaken from the spell night had put on him.

Oh no. If I reached for the Invisibility Cloak now, he would probably wake up. There were pencils all over the ground, and I didn't want to risk tripping on any.

Neither did I want Ronald to catch me standing there.

_What was I to do?_

Okay. My only choice now was to hide behind the curtains by Ron's bed, hoping that he wouldn't detect the slight bump that stood.

_"...Ughhh.." _Ron groaned. He scratched his head with his head; yawning. His eyes were only about half-open._ "...Wh..what the.."_

My body grew numb and I started to shiver. Of course the curtain did cover my face and my features, but the moonlight provided a distinct silhouette.

_"..Urmf." _He turned his head to the other side so that his back was facing me, and fell back asleep. I guess he was too slumberous to make out the shadow.

Time to go. Slowly I tried to hop over all the pencils, taking the Invisibility Cloak as I exited out the door fully soundless.

I secreted myself with the cloak once I took a step out of the Common Room, and I looked at my surroundings.

The castle corridors were completely dark and gloomy, but there were still a few lighted torches. Filch was undoubtedly patrolling the halls alongside with Mrs. Norris. Frightened of that fact, I took each and every step; always looking behind me. You never knew what could be hiding in the dark.

Now that I had the chance to talk to Draco without being interrupted, where would I go? I never had planned this beforehand, it just shot straight at me after Pansy's advice.

He might be sleeping in the Slytherin Common Room. I couldn't get in there.

Maybe I would think of something along the way (though I did not know where I was going), so I resumed my exploration. I knew the castle quite well, but at night, it overcame a completely different disguise that I was unfamiliar with.

_Taptaptap._

Someone - _something_ - was behind me.

Taptaptap, it went, and it didn't stop. It grew louder and louder. Petrified, I hid under the dim shadow of an unlighted torch, hoping they wouldn't see me. I took off my invisibility cloak, clutching it in my arms, burying my face in it, hoping the noise would stop.

But it was still at it; _taptaptap.

* * *

_

_Draco

* * *

_

I heard someone breathing. But I knew I wasn't scared of anything. Correct?

Still, I couldn't help but turn around so rapidly; breathing ever so heavily. Why have I left in the first place?

I continued, ignoring the faint sound, so the only thing I could hear was the tapping of my shoes against the hard floor.

Some sort of ruffling noise emerged from the shadows, causing me to avert entirely. My arms quivered with determination to find out exactly _what _was following me.

Even if I squinted my eyes, I couldn't make out any figure.

But, from under the blackness of the unlit torch, a foot with a brown shoe stuck out.

Some mixed emotion in me prevented me from speaking, so I stood there, completely hushed.

"...Draco?" A girl spoke.

My feelings gave way and I walked closer; being as alert as can be.

I could see the outline of a face and long hair. Their eyes looked at me as if they have never seen anything so awe-inspiring.

"...Hermione?"

* * *

**And that's all for Chapter 6 (sorry it took a while). I do not know when I will next update. I am moving on Saturday, and my internet won't be back until Tuesday (April 11th). The last time I could probably get online is on Thursay, April 6th (today is the 5th). But, I will take plenty of time w/the next chapter, and hopefully you'll find it interesting. Please review, and goodbye for now!**


	8. Crucial Memoirs

**Hello, I'm back and on the go! Sorry about the long wait. Just a little note before you read - once again, this chapter will start in 3rd person point-of-view, like Chapter 6, but only for the first part. Then it will revert to normal 1st person. This chapter is mostly dialogue for it is, indeed, an important chapter (you'll see). Enjoy!

* * *

**

The only sound remaining in the hallways was the wind howling. Fire from the surrounding torches crackled, and shadows from unlit fires secreted all below it.

As for the girl, she stood there, completely still.

The boy, on the other hand, became immensely uneasy and couldn't keep calm.

"...Hermione?" He mumbled once more.

On command, she stepped out, revealing herself with dark purple velvet bundled in her arms. Her cheeks were as crimson as a Hogwarts sunset; her eyes as dark as ebony. She stood on her tiptoes and then back on her heels again, back and forth, as the nervousness in her began to take play.

"D-draco." Was all that could withdraw from her lips. She refused to speak again until he replied first.

"...What are you doing here? It's late, and you should be in your Common Room!" Draco yelled, changing his mood at once.

"...W-well, what are_ you_ doing _here_?" Hermione asked, digging her fingers into the Invisibility Cloak.

Draco couldn't come up with any possible excuse to explain why he was roaming around the Castle. The truth was, indeed, he had come to talk to Hermione. Earlier...

"_Draco, I think you should talk to Hermione." Pansy demanded._

"_What? Why-" He started._

"_No exceptions, just find any possible way to talk to her. Don't ask.." Pansy snapped, taking her and the desirous attitude with her to bed._

"I am a prefect," he responded, hoping that his cover-up would seem realistic. "I always patrol the castle at this time of night."

"Speaking of that, I'm Gryffindor Prefect," Hermione pouted; speaking practical. "In fact, I should continue my monitoring now, and if I want to go to bed soon, I might as well finish it."

She had managed to strut off about a couple of feet away from Draco until she felt a tug on her sleeve. Hermione shivered.

"Wait," his voice echoed in the deserted passageways from behind her. He released his firm grip on her sleeve, watching it sway back to the side of her robes. "I have to talk to you."

Hermione, still not facing him, cleared her throat quietly. "Y-yes?"

"Well...I'm not _exactly_ sure what I have to talk about, but I was told to."

Now looking at him directly in the eye, she fiddled with her fingers that were still buried in the cloak.

"Okay. Come clean."

* * *

_Draco

* * *

_

I knew for a fact that Hermione had left her Common Room to talk to me as well. The look on her face said all.

So I started to walk away from her to continue our conversation in a different place, hoping she would follow me.

But she wasn't.

I turned around to face her again, now being a couple of feet away from her. Raising my eyebrows, I hoped _that_ would signal her to come along.

But, again, it didn't.

"Hurry up and get over here."

She widened her eyes at me curiously. "Excuse me?"

"I mean...come on."

Not surprisingly at all, she followed after I toned down my impatience a bit. I led her to some random corner where two chairs were. She took the one on the left; myself on the right.

"Okay...um...can I ask you something?" Hermione averted and gazed at me so deliberately.

"Go ahead."

"Has...has Pansy been trying to convince you to-"

"Talk to one another? Us?" I knew it.

"-Yeah, exactly," she placed Potters' Cloak on the armrest and tapped her fingers against her knees. Why was I observing her so attentively? "Why do you think?"

"Don't get me wrong, I know she's jealous...but the real thing is, what is that selfish girl so jealous _of_?"

"Selfish? I thought you were her friend."

"I am. I just think she's selfish.

"Oh. I see," Hermione let a sigh make its way out of her and turned away from me, staring into the starless night outside the window. "Maybe she's just...concerned."

"Concerned? About what?"

"I'm not quite sure. Uh...say, promise you won't go mad if I told you what she's told me?"

"Whatever, just tell me."

She wore a troubled mask on her face that disturbed me quite a bit. Her eyes were deeply focused on my own; I could see her lip quivering, nose flaring. Odd.

"...What?" Perhaps, it was necessary to ask _why_ she was looking at me so.

"You promise? I'm asking you to promise."

"Fine. I promise."

"So I guess I'm going to ask you...a couple of questions?"

"Uh, if you say so?"

Hermione released a breath of relief and let her shoulders sink down. Her knees were firmly pressed against the other; her shoes clapping themselves. The young night grew older; and it was pitch black outside. I waited for her to go on.

"Have you been ignoring Pansy lately?"

"No. She thinks I have, but I haven't. At least I _think_ I haven't."

"Do you...keep things from her? As in not telling her anything personal or great in value to you?"

"...What? Sure, I tell her things, but I've noticed that she can't seem to keep her mouth shut lately."

"Are...are you..."

"Am I?"

The brown hair fell over her face, covering her eyes. And I could clearly perceive that she was turning red.

"...Hermione?"

She snapped back into reality, flipping her hair back to its original place.

"Yes, what?"

"Your question."

"...R-right. Are you..."

The anticipation level was raising to an incredible height, and I could hear my heartbeat banging itself repetitiously in my ears. I even grew the determination to cover them, but I ceased myself.

"Really in _love_ with me?"

At that moment, all the stress inside me released itself and my heart was...dancing? Hermione had just asked me if I was in love with her, but I didn't know whether to answer this honestly or just lie to her. Again. Lie to her again like I always have for six years now, about to become seven.

So the right decision came into my mind and I replied, hoping I wouldn't regret coming clean to a Mudblood.

"Of course."

Maybe I didn't look at her as a 'Filthy Little Mudblood' anymore. She changed and...well, I did my own fair share.

"...Really?"

"Really. Why would I lie?"

A soft smile gradually formed on her face, brightening up everything. Then not too long after, she pondered for a moment.

"But...then why have you been so..."

"So cold?"

"...Yes. So...cold."

"It's a matter of hidden feelings, Hermione. You know how these things work. Take Weasley, for example."

"Ron?"

"Indeed. He's not _always_ polite to you, am I correct?"

"Yes, you are."

"So he was just flirting with you. To get to your feelings."

Did I really just say that? Never in my life did I think that there would be I day I would be courageous enough to speak those words. Those words that I have_ longed_ to speak. It was clear now.

"So...so you're saying...your bullying was..._flirting_?"

I smirked. "I'll leave that for you to answer."

That was it. The confessions were made, mine, at least - and now it was just a matter of time before she opened up.

"Bewildered, are you?"

"No. Actually...I've noticed you've gone through some changes."

"Is that so? What kind of changes?"

She chuckled a bit, causing me to laugh along with her. Bliss.

"Don't you remember in our firstsix years? You would never stop rankling Harry, Ron and I. But as for now, you've become quite different. Draco the boy has somewhat faded in you, and now is providing more space for Draco the _man_ to take play. Quite amazing, actually. You don't tease Harry as much as often, and you definitely don't call me _Mudblood _as countlessly as those days."

"You're saying that I was childish before?"

"Haha, well..if you want my honest opinion, yes."

I could swear I felt something fluttering in my stomach. Maybe it was that ridiculous feeling Muggles always consider as 'butterflies.'

"And Draco, I have something to say to you too. It may be a little too fast to admit, though."

"Yes, what is it?"

Three words.  
Three short words that changed my perspective on the world forever.

* * *

_Hermione_

* * *

Shortly after spilling out everything I've kept in hiding for a while now, I couldn't help but smile at him. Stare and smile. As odd as I was, I felt a sudden determination to tousle with his hair. It did look quite inviting, after all. 

"Exactly how are you going to tell this to Weasley?" Draco asked, a brief snigger hidden somewherein between.

"Exactly how are _you_ going to tell_ Pansy_ about this?"

Draco shook his head; refusing. I found it quite funny that whenever he asked me an unanswerable question about Ron, I would always bring Pansy up. Just for the laughing fun, of course.

"Say Hermione, why don't we keep it a secret? The whole word doesn't need to know, do they?"

"I guess you're right."

"That way people would think Purebloods and Mudblo-..._Muggleborns_ were still forbidden."

I didn't understand. "Is that a good thing?"

"Yes, it is. You wouldn't want them bothering us about it, would you?"

"Yeah. Yes, I wouldn't."

He yawned. And with his last bit of strength, he leaned over the armrests and pulled me into a comforting embrace. And of course, I gave him a longer one in exchange.

So was I officially Draco Malfoy's girl?

Just thinking about how many jealous Slytherin girls would want to be in my place made it seem like the thought was worth even more.

The next thing I knew I fell asleep, something I couldn't prevent. Right there in the middle of the corridor, on the chair, next to Draco.

I was his little secret.

* * *

**Hope you liked that chapter! Again, I'm sorrythat youhad to wait so long for something so...so...unsatisfying (to me at least).I don't know when I will be submitting the next one, it might take a while. My furniture and stuff isn't exactly ready yet. Please review and thanks for your time!**


	9. Fractured Mirror

**Yay! I'm at my mom's house now so I saved this chapter on a disk to upload here, for her place has internet. :) I'm sorry again for the long wait, but this chapter is pretty long, so I hope you find it to your pleasure!**

_

* * *

Hermione

* * *

_

"_How long do you reckon they've been there?"_

"_You must be kidding me!"_

"_Ever seen anything like that?"_

My eyes were still shut but I knew no dreams that happened tonight. A cluster of voices and startled gasps began to gather around me, but I refused to awaken, for I was far too comfortable – wherever I was.

"_Hermione! HERMIONE!"_

Someone was yelling my name with such feeling.

My eyelids attempted to give way, but I kept them closed, squinting hardly. As eager as I was to wake up and find out what in the world was happening, I remained.

Then a nudge dug into my shoulder. And again.

"_Wake up,"_ I felt something ticklish on my ear as someone whispered into it. Their voice quivered. _"Hermione. Wake up. This is bad." _

Bad?

Convinced, I rubbed my eyes open to see the face of Draco Malfoy, causing me to jolt straight up. I saw what he meant.

I saw what the _voices_ meant as well.

Several crowds of students were huddling around us, faces blank in astonishment. Crowded in the front stood Harry, Ron, and Ginny, along with Pansy and Millicent Bulstrode.

Oh no. Not only did I confess everything last night, but I fell asleep right here, in the middle of the corridor. And to make it even _more_ attention-worthy, Draco was here as well.

Ron's lip curled and face reddened. He was the one screaming my name.

I didn't like the feeling of eyes staring down at me so alertly, so I hid behind Draco. My courage was frail, and I hoped Draco could come up with _something_ to send the students away.

He wasn't the one to speak first, and neither was I.

It was Ron.

And Pansy.

"What is going on?" They shouted at the same time, leaning forward, causing them to clash into one another by their shoulders.

"Get out of my way, you worthless brat," Pansy scowled.

"You should be the one to talk," Ron glowered.

They got into a little row of their own. And it seemed Draco was getting rather outraged himself.

"Hermione, what happened?" Draco screamed at me, his face burning with intense anger and his hand gripping my wrist tightly. Too tightly.

"I-I didn't do anything…we just fell asleep-" I began, hoping he wasn't mad at me.

But he was.

"Then why didn't you wake me up? If you didn't remain sleeping this would've never happened!" The force on my wrist began to hurt. Hurt so badly that I could feel the blood rushing to my fingertips.

"I didn't know you wanted me to-"

"What makes you think that?"

"D-Draco, I'm sorry, I-"

"Shut up."

"What?"

"Shut _up_."

A shuddering gasp materialized from the students.

Finally he let go of my hand, and I could feel my skin change from red to its normal color. But that didn't prevent my tears from streaming down my cheeks.

They didn't roll down. At least for now. Instead, my eyes grew massively watery and they clung to my eyelashes as my cheeks flushed. Not wanting anyone to see, I covered them and backed away from Draco.

_Shut up_. Never did those two words hurt me so much as much as they did just now.

What was wrong with me? Draco was already angry at me the very day after I told him I loved him. My conscience was pressed on my feelings and his feelings far too much that I didn't think straight. It was my fault. And I hated myself for it.

And what did it ever do for me?

Ron, voice trembling, let out the first peep. "…Hermione?"

Only a mere sniffle came from me. Although my sight was momentarily covered, I knew Draco was still murderously glaring at me. _Ron, please don't talk right now, _I thought.

My heart sank and ran with stress. There was nothing for me to do now but to wait and see what happened.

I felt the chair next to me decrease in weight slightly, meaning Draco was standing up.

"Get out of here, all of you!"

Nobody moved from their spots; their eyes still fixed on us.

"I said _get out_! Leave!"

But they remained there. Horrible action. I thought Draco was going to curse them out until he was breathless, but he brought me into it.

"Hermione, tell them to leave."

"No."

"What?"

"No."

"Hermi-"

"I said NO!" With that, I leaped out of my chair, pushed Draco aside and ran away. The hot tears flew in the warm air, landing to wherever destiny wanted them to be. My legs grew wobbly and weak, but I kept myself at it. I didn't even dare to look back.

The Girls Bathroom in which Moaning Myrtle lurked was the closest, so I burst inside. As usual, it was completely deserted. I ran to a sink and let the tears descend to the drain, hoping that my problems would just drain away as well.

Not working.

I sobbed louder and stronger. Maybe I would run out of tears and there would be no way to let the sadness out. What would happen to me then? Would I shun myself from everyone forever?

I looked at myself in the broken mirror. My eyes were red and pouring; my cheeks flushed and eyebrows furrowed. Seeing the horrible image of me only gave way to more tears.

Shortly I left the sink and locked myself in a stall instead. There on the dirty ground, I buried my face in my trembling arms that encircled around my knees. No matter what I did, my crying didn't stop.

Throughout the whole day, possibly. It was now late afternoon and I still sat there. The thoughts of missing class added on to the frustration already growing inside of me, but I told myself, _it'll be alright soon. It'll be gone._

Several hours later I heard some footsteps come in. I was shocked and stood on the toilet at once, hoping my feet wouldn't be exposed. I thought that no one ever used this bathroom anymore, but again, I was wrong.

Peeking through the crack of the door, I saw a blonde Ravenclaw with a brunette Hufflepuff. They were just standing there as if they were being lured here.

"Hey, did you see what happened with that Hermione girl this morning?" The Ravenclaw girl asked.

"Yeah, I did. With that Draco guy…that was uncalled for."

"Poor things. I bet you anything they're begging for forgiveness right now. Both of 'em."

"Who knows…"

After both of them used the toilet and washed their hands, they left, as night covered Hogwarts grounds.

Maybe I shouldn't have yelled at him. Maybe I should've prevented myself from falling asleep.

But I couldn't help it. His embrace was so warm and housing; a sanctuary. So I welcomed myself in and dozed off.

Maybe they were right; maybe Purebloods and Mudbloods like me were never harmonizing. The good and the bad just didn't have a love story happening in between. How foolish I was to actually think I would've been his girlfriend. Or at least his friend.

An infinite list of "maybes" raced through my mind, and I tried to turn them into "yes" or "no" questions. There were a few.

Did I really love him? Yes.

Was it really my fault? Yes.

Does he have a right to be mad at me? Yes.

Would he ever forgive me? Maybe. No.

The giggling rising from Moaning Myrtle only made me feel worse. My pride was already hurt enough, and I didn't need her to pull my strings.

"Hey, get out of here!" She squealed.

"I'm not going anywhere," I snapped, hoping she would just be quiet.

But I realized she wasn't talking to me. There were footsteps coming from the entrance of the bathroom, and Moaning Myrtle kept going at it.

"I said get out! Boys aren't allowed in here!"

"_Well, no one ever goes in here, so let me in."_

"No!"

"_Then I'll let myself in." _

"Malfoy, why are you so arrogant?"

_Malfoy._ He was here? I didn't want Draco to discover me crying my eyes out. So I resumed the familiar process of getting up quietly to stand on the lid of the toilet, ceasing my breathing temporarily.

I knew he was still mad at me.

"I know you're here somewhere."

But his voice didn't possess that strict tone. It instead morphed into something sweet and melodic. Maybe I should let myself out?

Okay. That was enough to satisfy me to come out. As I leaned towards the handle, however, I slipped on the damp surface of the toilet lid and fell straight down, causing a mighty sting to spread over my head.

"Hermione? Is that you?"

The creak of the door opening meant that Draco had found me, face down. He rushed on his knees and helped me up, softly caressing my forehead.

"You okay?"

"Yeah, I…I'm fine." If he _was_ still mad at me and this was some kind of act, I changed my voice from somewhat casual to firm and steady.

I made an effort to walk out towards the exit, but I couldn't. His hands were steadfastly positioned on my shoulders and he guided me towards the mirrors. We stopped when my waist was barely touching its edge.

"About earlier," he began. Draco wasn't the best at starting a conversation, but at least you could expect something from him. "That entire mess back there…"

"Yes," I said. "I'm sorry."

A moment of silence followed, with no sound but the dripping of the sinks. Perhaps he was speechless that I apologized first. I couldn't anticipate him to do it first, so I let it out.

We didn't look at each other in the eye. We were looking at the faces of the boy and the girl in the wrecked mirror. The crack drew a line across in the middle, separating them.

I wonder if that line dividing them meant anything.

"Don't be." He replied.

"What?"

"Don't be sorry. It's my fault. I couldn't control my anger due to that embarrassment…I guess I'm just thoughtless like that, aren't I?"

"Don't say that. I knew for real that you didn't mean to say those things."

"You sure about that?"

"Yes. I'm sure."

_

* * *

Draco

* * *

_

I asked myself what she was thinking. Did she think I apologized too fast? Or did I wait too long?

"So…are we both alright?" I asked, after a little while of peace.

Hermione scooted forward a little so that her shoulders slipped out of my hands, and shifted her weight from one foot to the other.

"Of course. We both apologized, so we both should be satisfied. Right?"

"…Right." I liked how she could turn something so complicated and lengthy into something so concise and simple. "Let's head off to dinner. You hungry?"

"No thanks. I'm fine."

"You haven't eaten anything the whole day," I pointed out. "You're going to starve if you don't eat anything now."

"Oh alright…let's get something to eat."

We walked out of the Girls Bathroom towards the Great Hall. As we walked, our feet moved harmonically and my left hand was wrapped around her shoulder; my right hand in my pocket. Several passing students stared at us with awe, but giving them a dirty look seemed to send them off.

Approaching through the enormous doors, we seemed to catch the attention of even _more_ students (mainly the Gryffindors and the Slytherins, of course), in which a numerous amount of rose from their seats to get a closer look.

From the ends of the Gryffindor table, Potter and Weasley approached, along with that Filthy Blood Traitor Ginny Weasley who was clinging to Potter's arm so fiercely.

"Hermione and…Malfoy?" Potter muttered under his breath.

"What do you think you're doing?" Weasley roared. How pathetic.

"What is it that I'm doing that's aggravating you so badly?" From the corner of my eye I saw Hermione try to hold back her laughing. The Weasley girl noticed as well.

"Hermione! What are you doing with _Malfoy_…?" The Weasley girl shouted, releasing hold of Potter's arm. She glared at me and crinkled her nose.

"Nothing, he's just taking me to dinner, that's all," Hermione turned her head and swished her hair over her shoulder, giving her a pleased smile afterwards. "What's wrong with that?"

Weasley reverted to speak to Hermione, but his open mouth didn't seem to have any words with it. Instead, his face blemished with rage and turned to me.

"Get your bloody hands off of her!"

This should be interesting. I lifted my hand from her shoulder and Hermione stepped to the side. Smirking, I leaned forward towards Weasley, smirking.

"There. Done. Weasley, you ought to control that insane jealousy of yours a bit."

"I-I'm-who said I was jealous?" He stammered, directly turning a bright shade of crimson. Afterwards he stumbled backwards in attempt to strut back to his table, causing students around us to be seized with laughter. Hermione giggled, but only enough so I could hear.

"Just ignore Ron, Hermione," Potter remarked. "See you later." I sensed a bored and monotonous manner in his voice as he swaggered off with the Weasley girl.

"Actually," Hermione began, "I think I'm better off eating dinner with them. For tonight, at least."

"Fine with me," I countered. "I've got some explaining to do with Pansy, anyway. I bet you anything she's yelling her head off now."

"Haha," Hermione laughed. "Okay. I'll see you some other time. Goodbye."

"Bye," I waved and made my way towards the Slytherin table, where I got a couple of rude comments which I simply ignored.

I sat down on my seat, hoping to the Gods that Pansy wasn't in hers. She was; unsurprisingly.

The moment I was completely placed in my seat, she was dead silent. I started to eat like nothing ever happened, but that didn't give an excuse to all the other Slytherins who were furiously eyeing me.

I dropped my fork and proceeded to pick it up. That's when Pansy started her own little outburst of opinions.

"Draco, what is wrong with you? Whatever happened to Filthy Mudbloods, huh? I trusted you! Whatever happened to teasing Hermione and them? Why do you do this? Am I not your friend anymore?" She inhaled a deep breath after blurting out everything.

"Pansy," placing my fork back on the table, I faced her and looked at her directly. "Don't get me wrong. You're still my friend, but I don't always stay the same. Neither are you. Everyone can change, can't they?"

Pansy scoffed, a lump forming in her throat. "Yes, I know that Draco, but…this? Purebloods and Mudbloods don't belong together; that's what you told me. You told me to love a Mudblood, least _know_ them was a shame. You told me; you _taught_ me all those things. And the fact that you've been taught to stay within your bloods' limits since you were very young puzzles me. Why the dramatic change?"

"Listen. If I offended you in any way, you know that I'm sorry. Just because I've found a liking to Granger-"

"You found a _liking_ to her?"

"–_doesn't_ mean that I'm not going to be your friend anymore. Understood?"

She dropped her fork quite stylishly and her jaw dropped. Pansy was dead serious about this.

"Does that mean you don't love me anymore?"

Her words caused me to choke on my roast chicken, but I coughed it away. "W-what?"

"You're saying you don't love me anymore, aren't you? Aren't you?"

"If you mean friendly love, then no, but if you mean passionate love, then-"

"It's not a matter of friendly or passionate love! Are you saying you'd rather go with this Granger girl than me?"

"Well, if you want my honest answer, then yes."

I could see right through Pansy. I knew that indeed, she was using her smile to hide the pain she really felt. Of course I did feel guilt stirring inside of me somewhere, but I had to tell her the truth.

"Oh. Okay. Well, that's all I needed to know," After taking a final swig of Pumpkin Juice, she got to her feet. "In that case, I'll see you tomorrow. Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

I watched her walk across the narrow passageways in between the tables and out through the doors. Before she made the final turn, however, she turned back to look at me, syncing the words with her lips _'Thanks for being honest._' Then I watched her short dark hair finally disappear behind the walls.

Maybe I could still be Pansy's friend and cooperate with Hermione at the same time. Who knows, but the future isn't too far ahead to know for sure.

* * *

**Whew! That's the end of this chapter. I had to break Pansy's heart _somewhere_ to ensure the whole Draco/Hermione thing will work out. I had a really fun time writing this chapter and I hoped you liked reading it! See you all soon.**


	10. Ever Seen The Ocean?

**Here's another chapter. It starts out in 3rd person; you should get used to it by now. Hope you enjoy!

* * *

**

One warm morning came a stillness as if the whole world were holding its breath. The emptiness in the corridors brought desolation to the hallways.

A class of Transfiguration loomed over the students.

"You may all begin," Professor McGonagall instructed. "And don't make too much of a mess. Once you finish, you are all dismissed."

Hermione hurried over to Harry.

"Uh, sorry Hermione…I'm already partnering up with Neville for this." He said wide-eyed as he watched her bring her belongings from her desk to his, plopping it on the table.

"Oh goodness, what difference will it make?" Spat Hermione, running her fingers through her hair. "Besides, don't you want to boost up your Transfiguration grade? I could help you there."

"…Sure, I guess."

"Then let's start. Let's see, step 1," Hermione traced her finger on the words of an Instructions sheet. "Take your chick and place it firmly on your board."

Harry cautiously picked up a fluffy, yellow chick and positioned it on a wooden board. He bent over to read from the sheet. "Step 2, silence your chick…Hermione, you can do this part."

"Why can't you do it, Harry?"

He shrugged.

Hermione pulled her wand out of her robes and called, "Oh, fine. _Silencio_!" With that, the chick stopped its maddening peeping and made not a sound; beak still moving.

"Done. Step fou-"

"Say Hermione?"

"…What?" Not too fond of being interrupted, she sighed and rolled her eyes in disgust.

"Why didn't you choose Ron as your partner?"

Hermione pointed to the distance and Harry's eyes followed the trail it left. "See there? He's already partnered up with your previous partner, Neville. Besides, even if he _didn't_ have a partner, he's still worked up about that whole scenario at the Great Hall."

"Oh…I see. Then, why didn't you choose Malfoy then?"

"Draco?"

"Erm, yeah. Draco."

"Are you blind, Harry?"

"No."

"He's already with Blaise. Now stop distracting me and let's get back to work, please."

"…Right." Harry hurriedly set his eyes on the Instructions sheet, scanning down to find the next step. "Step four, cast your spell."

Hermione picked up her wand from the hard wooden table and pointed it straight at the chick. "_Detego_!"

In sync with many other students' chicks, their own feathers ejected out of its body and swayed to the floor. The chick, now wailing but completely soundless, began to flap its bald wings. Many students uproared in amazement and some were convulsed in uncontrollable laughter.

"That was easy, wasn't it?" Hermione asked, and Harry, not knowing what to say, raised a brow. She put her quill and ink back in her bag and rose from her desk; walking out the door, not waiting for anyone.

The corridors were completely abandoned. In fact, Hermione was the only one there.

She made her way to the courtyard, feeling the soothing wind dance against her face; blowing her fast enough to fly.

Hermione walked over towards the lake, and sat on a rock in which Harry, Ron and her had always hung around during their free time. She fumbled through her bag and pulled out a book.

_It feels nice to read when you're alone_, Hermione thought. _And when you're somewhere quiet._ She quickly ran through the memory of how the Gryffindor Common Room would be considered "quiet"; especially the thought of Fred and George and their annual game of Exploding Snap breaking the silence.

But she didn't pay any attention to the book. She gazed at the Black Lake, shining against the beating sun, ripples roughening the surface. Her thoughts, however, dwelled around that of Draco Malfoy and the complications of delivering her heart to him.

She remembed Pansy's advice. _"Let me just tell you this...if you are willing to be his girlfriend, or something like that, just...be careful."_

Was she really about to take this risk?

The book didn't last open for long. Unoccupied, she snapped it closed, dropping it back into her bag. Hermione stood up and walked up a hill, grass swaying at her feet, tickling her skin.

At the top, the scenery was even more grand. Black birds fluttered in the distance through the white puffy clouds, the golden sun peeking through them. Hermione thought how she never even thought of gazing at something as gorgeous as this was. She blamed herself from being so focused on her busy schedule that even the best things in her life were left unseen.

After a split second the whole world was concealed. Warmth and darkness covered her eyes as she held her breath. Her legs went completely stiff; her arms numb. The body she had shook uncontrollably and finally became motionless.

_What was happening to her?_

"Guess who?" Someone said casually to Hermione, now crumpled like a wilting flower.

But it soothed her. A faint smile crawled over her face, tingling her cheeks. Perhaps, she thought, it wouldn't hurt to tease him a little.

"Ronald?"

An old smirk slid back on the mysterious individual's face. They spoke huskily. "Do you really think I would prefer to be considered as that Weasley? Come on. Take a guess. I want to hear you say it." Quite flirtatiously, the unidentified one chuckled.

But instead of letting his fascinating name escape the edges of her lips, she gently weaved her fingers with theirs, pulling them away, bringing back the glorious sun and lake.

"Hello there, Draco," she greeted, locking glances with him. Her brown eyes staring against his cold, gray eyes caused such sensation to fill her. "What brings you here?"

He got to his knees, the blades of grass lowering from his weight, and shifted so he was facing away from her. "I told you to guess," he said doggedly. "I have a little extra time in my hands. I was wondering where you were, but I wandered around and found my way. So I guess I'm going to stay here for a while."

"...Oh. Okay," spluttered Hermione.

She was on the verge from swooning with the emotions of embarrassment, fear, love and weariness. _He was...looking for me? _Hermione wondered. Her heart rang inside her, sending many questions to her mind.

A stern, sober expression replaced the usual condescending smirks on Draco's pale, pointed face; persisently remaining. His thoughts trailed off to elsewhere. Hermione admired the fact that Draco had put awareness to her; but the very thought of being accepted by his malicious, viperous self stabilized her. She hated it.

Yet she wanted more. That night when her feelings were confessed; all was out of control. She couldn't help but speak those three words.

Now she wanted to let them out ever so badly; her will battled her consciousness and it was unable to leave her tongue. Why was it so difficult for someone as brainy as she was to speak a simple 'I love you' and resolve all the bashful emotion bouncing inside her? But she did know that smarts and wits had nothing to do with love. Love was abrupt and comes and goes, leaving a scar to those unlucky. She knew that if you seek for love, you would never find it.

Although, she was looking for someone unintentionally, and the tables turned and that someone found her.

Uneasy. Her left hand longed to wrap itself around his shoulders; his neck. The power prowling deep within prevented any further movementss. Flurries in panic classified; she gulped and a decorative pink patch ran across her face.

_

* * *

Hermione

* * *

_

I just couldn't take this uncomfortable silence anymore. I wanted to be closer to him more than I'd like to admit. I wished...I wished...

That my feeble courage would just drink up its mercy; though I did know that there was know use in wishing.

Was I really _that _spoiled? I've grown even more covetous over the years. I wanted a dress for the Yule Ball. I've gotten it. I wanted my teeth to shrink to send away the rude comments. I've gotten it. I wanted some best friends. I've gotten that.

I wanted Draco.

And I got that, too. Not completely; there was a still a part of him that drifted away from my reach, and it was up to me and no other to gain it back.

My mind flickered.

The minutes passing by felt like the longest I've ever experienced. At this rate, nothing would happen between us and we would both have to resume our regular class schedule. I could feel it. Tension drifted to the highest point; and I couldn't help myself. I could feel my hand moving; sliding across the rough grass to place it on his own.

But I was blown away with the action he presented next.

His slender fingers encircled around the edge of my waist. Even from behind, I could tell that the corners of his mouth rose; smiling; impressed. Pulling me closer to the point where my head was pressed against his chest, the sound of the wind became indistinct.

In fact, the whole world seemed like it started to melt as my heart did. Bliss flourished and I could hear his heartbeat.

A slow, monotonous yet rhythmic beat. It vibrated against my ears; enlightening every inch of me.

He also wore some sort of majecstic cologne - it smelled like the ocean with a hint of exotic spice. A melancholy emotion of some sort seemed to drift through my system; my breathing growing quiet.

"Have you ever seen the ocean, Hermione?" he asked, after a little while.

Maybe he had noticed I was smelling that magnificent scent.

"No."

"That's a shame!" his frenzied voice gradually increased in volume.

"Yes," I said severely. "I've never had the opportunity to set aside everything else to see the ocean. My family is very...busy."

"Is that so..."

"Definitely."

Bringing me closer, his tongue clicked. "Tell you what."

"What is it, Draco?"

"I'm going to promise you something. I'll let you see the ocean. Someday, I will."

_Please, let the clock chime hold_, I prayed. _Just a couple of more moments_. His breathing was slow and steady, and I felt long, cold slender fingers creep on the back of my head.

Maybe some things could wait, I'll wait for him, even if I have to wait forever. Besides, you can't have a relationship with only one person; it takes two people to make it.

_

* * *

Draco

* * *

_

Conceivably Hermione was familiar with the affectionate process of hair-stroking.

But something was different. I would've thought that her mane of bushy brown hair - now _slightly _bushy - would be hard to comb through, but once I began to groom it; my fingers merely slid through like they do across the curtains of my room.

As I witnessed this unfamiliar passion, I thought about a few concepts that I've never seemed to cover before.

Wasn't Hermione scared of me?

She knew that indeed, Death hung alongside me; it could just fool me simply to allow it to hurt her as well.

But I wasn't about to let that happen. Indeed I've came up with a plan, and with that plan, a vow.

I would never let Voldemort lay a hand on Hermione. Never. Even if he threatened to kill me, I'll make sure I would be the first to fall; only hoping to land in her arms and to see her face blur; an _inch_ away from oblivion.

An almost resolute feeling descended upon me, as we cherished our last seconds together. I was convinced that I finally found my way out of the windowless room; Hermione was the one who held the key.

The clock chime rang; on a broken cue.

"I'm definitely not in the mood for Potions," she hissed dreadly. "Did you finish the essay?"

"What essay?"

"The essay we were assigned yesterday."

"...No, not that I remember."

"Oh well...might as well come up with an excus-"

"Hold on, Hermione." I paused to stand up, letting my hand out so she could rise as well. "Are you telling me you_ didn't _finish your homework?"

"Yes. I believe I am."

My lips curled up into an incredulous, cold smile, as we started to walk down the hill and back into the school. Through the corner of my eye I could see that in fact, an accomplished look was clearly etched on Hermione's face; and on mine as well. Our minds will work as one sooner or later.

And our character didn't seem to be kept in hiding anymore, either.

Impending towards the Potions classroom, we seemed to catch a few of the students' rounded mouths in protest. Except for that of Pansy however, she passed by giving me a friendly wave, as if Hermione were ungraspable to the world around her.

Once inside, Hermione proceeded towards her seat. Before that, she approached the emotionless face of Snape. I followed.

"Professor Snape, would it be wise of me to inform you ahead of time that my essay was not completed?" She confessed, instantly out of the blue.

Thunderstruck; I couldn't believe my ears. No one would ever stand up to Snape like this; especially a _Gryffindor_.

The light threw sinister shadows across his face. Hermione shuddered.

"What, may I ask, Miss Granger, is your excuse?" He asked, his voice raspy.

"...Lack of time?" She said, her voice filled with muted fear.

Snape, as well, had experienced the flimsy remark of Hermione's actions. He laughed bitterly and reduced his eyes to slits.

"Ten points from Gryffindor," he enquired, amusement shining on his face. "Now return to your seats, both of you, before I deduct_ fifteen_."

Hermione promptly sped back to her seat; I myself doing the same. I was still disconcerted.

Throughout the whole period of Potions, I didn't give up any of my deliberation on the lesson. Alternately, my mind was more centered around the affirmation I had made earlier; whatever would I do to let Hermione behold the vision of the ocean before the end of this year? I had only made that promise to brighten up her mood, to make her happy; excited. But I did not have a current scheme to let that happen.

Still, a promise was a promise, and Hermione was my number one priority now. And I will never let her slip away from that title.

**

* * *

Yeah, I thought that was a total let-down, especially after Chapter 8, but I had to redo this three times because the file kept disappearing. Sorry! I still hope you liked it, though. Please review!**


	11. Please Accept My Bestowals

**Thanks for all the lovely reviews, guys! In thanks for that, I bring to you Chapter 10! Have fun :) **

_

* * *

Hermione

* * *

_

Fog had seeped in the windows; concealing them with mist. And with that, snow had set itself down on the grounds of Hogwarts, reliving the yearly tradition of winter.

It was now the day students would be leaving for Christmas break. Intricate decorations were hung all over the place - banners, holly berries, pine trees, ornaments - everything.

As with all Christmas traditions - there was the one that left most students talking. _Mistletoes_.

I myself never found it quite perilous or a big matter - so I treated this like anything else. Besides, what were the odds I _actually_ would present a kiss to the one I was under with? Walking away would be the accurate solution, now wouldn't it?

The smell of fresh crumpets enticed me to hurry on back to the Gryffindor table to eat breakfast. I took a quick swig of pumpkin juice and quietly started munching on the crisp bread.

Harry, Ron and Ginny had arrived shortly after, each with their own individual golden plates of crumpets.

"Happy Christmas, Hermione," Ginny grinned, taking a sip from her goblet. "I got you a present!"

From beside her seat; she pulled out a small box wrapped in crimson paper and golden ribbons. It was one of those packages that were far too beautiful to open.

Harry beamed; I assumed he knew what was inside. Ron merely crinkled his nose and continued eating.

"Thank you, Ginny," I said, gently taking the small box from her hands. I moved my plate across the table so my present was placed in front of me.

The ribbon looked absolutely inviting to pull open, but I slid it out gradually until it came completely loose; falling out of its place. Now all was left was the wrapping.

Ginny seemed to distinguish the troubled look I presented.

"Oh, don't worry about the wrapper," Ginny loosened her collar and took a bite out of her scrambled eggs. "It's the inside of it I want you to see."

"If you say so..." The pieces of tape that were pressed on the edges of the box I now took off; the wrapping paper falling out of place.

A strange but wondrous white box derived; with a silver heart illustrated on its lid.

_Oh, Hermione, just get this over with_, I reasoned.

I pulled the lid off, exposing a sting with infinitesimal golden chains.

A necklace.

Not just a necklace, but a locket. A caramel heart shaped pendant had a scarlet _'H'_ engraved in it.

Ultimately overwhelmed, I let the necklace prevail there.

"Ginny...this...its so dazzling!" My smile shimmering in appreciation, I folded the golden ribbons and shoved them in my pocket, hoping I would find a good use in them later. "Thank you very, very much Ginny. You're too kind."

"No problem! After all, its Christmas! I'm glad you like it, Hermione. Say...why don't you put it on?" Ginny insisted.

Before I had any chance to reply, she sped out of her seat, plunged under the table, and emerged next to me.

She slipped her fingers through the textured chain and opened the lock at the back.

"Put up your hair."

I isolated the back of my scar and raised my tuft of thick hair.

Ginny brought the necklace around my head and snapped it closed at the back of my neck.

"There. Done."

My hair descended to its original place and I tightened my scarf.

"It looks really good on you," Harry complimented, now finished with his breakfast.

"Thanks. But Ginny...I'm so, _so_ terribly sorry that I haven't had enough time on my hands to get you a present as well! How can I ever make it up to you?" I felt rather blameworthy after being presented with such an appealing piece of jewelry.

"No matter, Hermione, I'm fine."

"But I really should give you something in return!"

"If you're sure you want to, its fine with me if its late. Really, the whole celebration of Christmas is enough for me to handle." She giggled.

"In that case, I'll try to."

Ginny continued under the table once more, and returned to her seat.

"So, Harry," I began. "What are you doing this Christmas Break? Definitely not staying with the _Dursleys_, now, are we?"

"I'm staying at the Burrow for a while again," he responded. "It's actually rather merry there. You should go see."

Ron finally said his first words to me that morning.

"Why don't you come along, Hermione?" he asked, matter-of-factly.

Was he _asking_ to be offended? I've already informed him the other day that I would be staying at home with my parents. As he advanced to ask me again, my brain raced trying to come up with something to say that wouldn't be too insolent.

"Actually...I'm staying back at home with my parents," I replied. "Mum and Dad are expecting me."

"Oh. I..._see_." he said enthusiastically.

The clock chimes played in the distance, and the students who were sitting in their seats now arose, taking their suitcases with them.

"Time to go," Ginny announced.

Harry, Ron, Ginny and I made way towards the front gates to the carriages.

Wait a minute. I almost forgot something.

"Guys, I'm going to go to the restroom real quick," I said quite agilely.

"Do you want us to wait for you?" Harry queried.

"N-no, that's okay," I hoped I didn't sound _too_ suspicious. "You guys go ahead. I'll catch up with you guys later."

"Okay, if you say so," Ginny continued her treading towards the front with Harry and Ron.

After I turned away and before they were completely out of my sight, I could've sworn I heard Ron. '_Told you she was acting weird_.'

I ignored that comment. Instead of heading towards the Girls' Bathroom, I returned back to the Great Hall, where I bumped into someone in the doorway.

Oh dear.

"Mistletoe," they said, pointing up at the white and green plant hung at the towering arch.

I just pushed Ernie McMillan away and continued towards the tables.

And I finally found exactly who I was looking for.

Once I laid eyes on him, I fretted and searched through my robes as quick as I could. And I found it; keeping it in my pocket for later.

They approached towards me first, so I froze.

"Happy Christmas, Hermione," Draco pitched. "Whereabouts are you headed this break?"

"Just staying at home," I repeated once more. "What about you?"

"Same, nothing special," he gestured me to sit down at a table, so I followed and descended to the seat next to him. "Actually, father doesn't like Christmas very much."

"Why so?"

"I don't know, I'm guessing he doesn't really like celebrations...perhaps he's just in it for the wealthy gifts my relatives always give him."

"Oh."

"Ah, that reminds me," he stuck his hand in his robes and pulled out a glittery pink box. "This is for you."

_Not again_...the wrapping was even more breathtaking than that of Ginny's.

But still, I felt cheerful that he thought about me.

"For me?"

"Especially for you."

He placed the box on my lap and I picked it up, observing every angle of it.

"Thank you, Draco." I grasped his hand in act of gratitude.

Draco placed his free hand on top of mine; creating some sort of sandwich of our palms.

"You're welcome. But, here's something to know," he scooted closer so that my knee was in contact with his. "Don't open it until you're home."

I furrowed my brows in curiosity.

"...Why is that, Draco?"

He smirked at me with delight, narrowing his eyes. I would've never thought that staring at those cold gray eyes of his would be so fascinating.

"It'll be better if you could enjoy its magic by yourself."

"Huh...?"

"Trust me."

Exactly what did Draco give me? However, it wasn't too soon until I was about to find out.

"Now its my turn," I muttered. When I leaned down to search through my robe pockets yet again, I felt the vibration against my thighs on the seats as Draco tapped his fingers.

"Here's my present for you."

I brought out - _not a box_ - but a velvet green pouch, tied at the top with a white ribbon; with a small tag attached to it.

Releasing the bag in his hands, he started to read the tag.

"_Happy Christmas, Draco - love from Hermione_," he read, his eyes fluttering from one side of the tag to the other. "So, that's love from you, isn't it?"

My cheeks bloomed and a pink tinge fell upon my face. What was I to say?

"Y...yes."

I knew that I was too shy to tell him I loved him again, and he knew so.

Draco sniggered.

"Good. That's great to hear. Tell you what, I'll open it at my house as well. That way it'll be fair."

"O...okay."

A few seconds of sitting next to Draco in the warm, toasty atmosphere caused me to lose myself.

But it wasn't long until this pleasure would last.

Pansy walked by with her friend Millicent and started to talk as if she didn't even notice the comfortable look on Draco's face.

"Draco, Hermione, you guys are going to be late," she stated. "The trains' leaving in a couple of minutes and you two really should get going."

"Seriously, you two don't want to miss the train, do you?" Millicent snorted, rather pleased with herself.

Pansy then strutted off towards the front with Millicent. I heard Millicent ask her why she addressed me with my first name.

She shook her head and when they turned at a corner, they were gone.

"She's right, let's go," Draco stood up and gathered up his belongings.

We walked out of the castle and felt our feet sink into the bitter snow; those atop landing on our heads.

A gathering of black carriages and sleighs led by white unicorns were waiting for fellow students to approach them. Others sped through the fair snow towards Hogsmeade station.

Draco paced towards a carriage with a comely unicorn; pausing for him to come towards it.

He jumped onto the cushions of the seat.

"Hermione, want to ride on a carriage with me?" he asked, flashing a smile.

The wind blew though hint; my hair and scarf lurching with it. My eyes browsed the area for a moment. After all, Harry, Ron and Ginny were gone, there was no one relatively near to ride with at the moment, so why not take this chance?

I giggled and leapt up on the plush cushions, aside him.

The unicorn neighed with glee and began to run through the pure whiteness. Draco raised his left arm and wrapped it around my waist; causing me to instantly flush. What an appeasing feeling.

But still, I wonder.

I wondered why he refused to allow me to open his gift here, in front of him. Maybe there were some things in this world you're better off enjoying alone.

Finally arriving in Hogsmeade station, clusters of students crammed inside the doors, others hugged their friends goodbye, and the rest just stood there; as if waiting for something to happen.

Fortunately, Hagrid waved his hands in motion to allow the students to enter the doors in single file lines; decreasing the intensity of the crowd.

To any bystanders, anyone would consider the sight of a female Gryffindor and a male Slytherin strolling along together rather _unusual_, but no other than Ron Weasley would go completely berserk.

He was there. Right there, along with Harry and Ginny, watching.

Nowadays Ron constantly plastered a smirk on his face, not as cold as the one you would _recognize_ as Draco's, but it had an aggressive feeling.

"So...you took a little _detour_ on your way to the Girl's Bathroom, didn't you, 'Mione?" He sneered, filling me with an uncanny feeling.

"_Ssh_, Ron, don't make such a fuss about it," quirked Ginny, having to stand on her tiptoes to whisper in Ron's ear.

"Ron, I must say, it is absolutely _none of your business _in whom I'm accompanied with," I didn't care if I was hurting his feelings; for now Ronald was brushing me off on the wrong side. "Besides, why does it tick you off so?"

Harry nudged Ron to end this now, but Ron simply disregarded him.

"'Mione! Do you not realize how...how _different_ you've been acting?"

"Oh really. Tell me, then, Ronald," I emphasized the use of his full first name. "What is it that I am doing is rankling you so?"

I could tell that Ron had no intention to yell at me. He knew that everyone found him acting quite foolish; even Harry and Ginny seemed to agree.

I waited and waited for him to throw another insult at me. _Come on, Ron, keep it coming._

Ron paused only briefly before he opened his mouth to speak, but his words weren't the first to win the race.

Draco's were.

"Weasley, I'm surprised you're even capable of thinking of an excuse," he bickered before tugging my sleeve. "Come on. Let's leave."

We turned our backs to them, and I was sure Ginny laughed at Ron tauntingly due to his embarrassment.

"First you go through some freakishly dramatic change in your personal thought of Muggle-borns, then you go stealing Hermione away from us, but you don't even have the decency to fight back!" Ron screamed from behind.

Draco hopped on board of the train and I was pressed in front of him, supported by the hand placed on the small of my back.

He stuck his head out of the doorway; only barely to see the surging expression on Ron's face.

"There is no need to fight back at such witty reasons." Draco finished, gritting his teeth before we made our way completely in.

Due to the amount of students returning home for Christmas Break (mostly First years, of course); the staff had put up notices on the walls that we students would be allowed to sit where we preferred to.

"Where do you want to sit?" Draco enquired.

"Anywhere you wish to."

"Alright then, let's go over here," he held my hand, sending a thousand jolts up my spine, and led me towards to what seemed the back of the train. "In here. This is where I usually sit. With Pansy and them, of course."

I flinched.

"Ah, don't worry. She's not in there."

Through the compartment door I could see a couple of small, blurred figures, all gathered inside.

Draco slid open the door and zipped through, encountering about four Second-Years.

"...What?" one of the Second-Year boys called out.

"Get out."

"Uh, we were here first, Mister-" a perky looking girl began.

"I said leave. Now."

Draco tightened his grip and reduced his eyes to slits; frightening the kids. They sped out of the compartment, whimpering to find an available one.

"...Wow." was all I could say.

"You'll get used to it," he said, closing the door after allowing myself in. "They get pretty irritating, those kids."

'_You'll get used to it.'_ Does that mean I would be hanging around with him more often?

"Huh? Oh, yeah. Right." I mumbled, snapping back into reality.

I felt the train move a little, and the wheels started to turn, meaning that it began its long journey back to Kings Cross Station.

* * *

**That chapter wasn't very long, but I had a jolly time writing it :) Note to all of you reading this - the next chapter will be covering a bit of Draco's Christmas Break. The second half of that will be looking over Hermione's. It won't be too long until I update next, for I already have a lot of ideas for the upcoming one ;)**

**Hope you liked it! So, what did Draco and Hermione give each other for Christmas? Keep reading to find out, and please review!**


	12. A Sour Christmas

**As promised, you didn't have to wait too long for Chapter 11. And for those of you who read the Author's note at the end of Chapter 10; please ignore that. This chapter will only cover Draco's side of Christmas break, while the one following it will revert to Hermione's. It's kind of long, so...yeah. And I decided to not put Hermione's here just for...well...to keep you guys anticipated. Have fun :)**

_Draco_

I arrived home rather later than usual.

"Welcome home, and Happy Christmas, Draco," Mother said, opening the door to our mansion and brushing the snow off my shoulders. "Glad you're back." After that she embedded a kiss on my cheek and gave me an awfully long hug.

I rolled my eyes. "_Hello_, mother." Then I made my way to the family room to confront my father.

Maybe he changed his mind about Christmas this year.

Carrying my suitcase, I found my father on the couch, drinking some tea my mother must've made earlier.

"Happy Christmas, Father," There was some sort of incredulous intonation hidden somewhere in my voice, although I'm sure that my father detected it. "...I'm back.. And...you're back from Azkaban."

"...Indeed. Welcome back, Draco," he crossed his legs and took another sip of tea, blowing away the steam. "...I see you've received a lot of gifts."

He looked at a paper bag sticking out of one of the suitcase pockets.

"Yes, Father."

Yet again, not even a small '_Happy Christmas' _from Father. Never.

"Right. Draco, you may head up to your room. Your mother and I will have an important discussion with you at dinner covering why I have returned and how you will be involved." Father ordered.

I turned to look at my mother, who was nodding vigorously.

"Alright. See you soon, Father."

I made my way up the black staircase, to the second door of the right hallway - my room.

Even outside it with the door firmly shut, I could still take in the familiar aroma of vanilla.

I turned the silver doorknob and opened the door, revealing a dark atmosphere with only a few pieces of furniture comprehensible.

After releasing my suitcase on my bed, my hand felt infinitely relieved. I walked across my large room and pulled open the dark green curtains, displaying snow descending from the skies and onto my window.

If I didn't sort out the things in my suitcase now, Mother would cause all this commotion, bellowing things out like _'The house elf can't do everything, Draco! If you don't clean it up now, you're going to have to deal with your father instead!'_

Yes, well, my parents weren't the nicest you could ask for although there were rare occasions when they could be. They were the most prosperous, attentive parents I would _ever_ have.

So I walked to my suitcase, unzipping it open, looking at my clothes and bag of presents.

_Oh, Hell_. I'll deal with the clothes later. For now I was eager to see what was inside those bundles of wrapping paper; waiting to be let free from its prison.

"Let's see, which one to start with first?" I spoke to myself; not like I was expecting the presents to reply back.

I picked them all up and threw then down on a white couch (which was, in fact, in my room) next to me, and I counted how many there were.

There was one from Blaise, Theodore, Pansy, Millicent, Miles, Daphne, and of course, the one I was most anxious to open -

Hermione's. It might've been the smallest one here, but I knew whatever there was inside had greater value.

And to this year I've just noticed, I've never received any presents from Crabbe and Goyle. Oh well, I view them to be completely useless anyway.

In total there were seven presents. One more than I received last year.

Perhaps I would start with the largest. And like every year, the largest present would be from no other than Pansy.

This time the huge box was wrapped in twinkly deep pink paper, with white frills and red streamers around the bow. On the box, in black and fancy handwriting, it said: _For_ _the one and only Draco._

What did she think it was, Our Anniversary? _Valentine's day?_

I untied the deep red ribbon and began peeling off the decorative tape on the sides.

When all the paper and frills were _finally_ off, there was a long, white rectangular box with even _more_ tape.

My fingers started to strain as I pulled off the tape quickly. How much protection did this gift _need_?

Once finished with that, I removed the lid of the box.

Inside there were brand new, Slytherin Quidditch Robes I've always wanted when I was younger. I brought it out, smelling that weird smell I always do everytime I step foot in the Quidditch store. I have to admit, I was proud that Pansy had remembered what I've always wanted (not so much now).

Also inside the box, was a card and a black pouch. When I shook it, there was a jingling of coins.

The money in total was 31 Galleons, 2 Sickles and 26 Knuts.

Did she think that _money_ was the key to please me?

Now for the card.

It itself was even more adorn than the box, with swirls here and there. And of course - what would Pansy be without frills, frills and more frills?

I opened it.

_Dear Draco,_

_Happy Christmas! I hope you liked the presents. I know that we don't talk to each other that often anymore in school, but let me say that I will always be your friend._

_Always,_

_Pansy_

_PS - I hope you have a great Christmas break! See you soon._

She was correct that I didn't talk to her as usual as I did before. I would send her an owl later, maybe.

Blaise gave me a Quidditch Model of the Golden Snitch. That makes me feel _much_ better, seeing

that I've always lost to the most Saintly person I've ever met, that Potter.

Theodore and Millicent both gave me socks. How...thoughtful.

Miles merely stuffed his card that was filled with about 20 Galleons in Daphne's box. That's all he had, and all his card had to present to me was _'Happy Christmas - Miles'._

And as for Daphne, who I have been informed by Pansy and Theodore has this deep fancy to me, gave me a hand-knitted black sweater with 'Draco Malfoy' in golden letters in the back. Not only that, but a red heart dwelled under it.

Like I really would give away my identity to the world around me.

Now was the moment I've been waiting for. Hermione's present.

Just when I began to pull the white ribbon off, my door opened.

And Father stepped in, walking towards me.

"My, _my_...who is this from?" He picked up the Quidditch Robes and sack of money.

"Oh, that's from Pansy." I said hurriedly, quickly throwing Hermione's pouch behind me.

"I would've never guessed," Father said coldly. "Let's see, some socks...more coins...and a sweater. That's it? I could've sworn I saw more presents."

"No, it's not that, Father. It seemed that the wrapping paper was more lengthy than the present itself was."

"I see. Then...what is _that_?"

He pointed behind me.

_Shit,_ I swore in my mind.

The white ribbons on the pouch were quite long and seemed to have revealed themselves from the further back.

"Oh, it's nothing, it's just-" I began, being cut off by Father's hand reaching towards it and taking it.

"Well, this is small isn't it? Wonder who it's from."

He read it to himself silently for about 3 seconds. 3, dreaded, uncomfortable silenced seconds.

The light in his eyes emptied.

"So...this is from your dear friend _Hermione_." He said idly.

I already knew that too well. My mouth opened to explain, but something way beyond my control didn't let me speak.

My father started screaming at me, his voice hoarse and his anger echoing through the walls.

"Draco! Explain this to me! Hermione? Are you telling me you've been interacting with that MUDBLOOD? Speak!"

He grabbed me by the collar, and my body felt like it was just poisoned. I couldn't move.

I was never this scared of Father before.

"N-no, I don't _interact_ with her, she just gave me a present, a-and-"

I shuddered as Father released his grip on my collar, allowing me to breathe regularly again.

But it didn't end as easy as that.

His hand whipped out of his sleeves and towards my face; the act of a harsh slap. Once he got it over with, I could feel a painful stinging on my cheek as I placed my hand on top of it.

"I can see right through you, Draco. You knew for a fact that we have forbid you to respect those filthy Muggle-borns. Did Hermione change you? Were you fooled by how she acted towards you; or perhaps you fell for some sort of beauty that awakened from her? Tell me, did you?"

"...No," I lied.

"Don't lie to me."

"I'm not."

Father scoffed and stomped towards the door.

"I will see you at dinner."

"Yes, Father." I winced.

He closed the door shut and the intermittent silence took play again.

I could feel my cheeks burn; my skin tingling red; my eyes swimming with anger and sadness.

Was I not allowed to love Hermione, lest _know_ her? Look at her? I knew for a fact that I was banned to befriend a Mudblood, but Hermione was more than that. From my point of view, I broke through the hard, rough Muggle-born edges and fallen into her sweet core.

I was afraid that I would only feel worse after reading a supposive card Hermione gave me; it would only cause me miss her terribly more than I already did.

I headed down the stairs casually and walked towards the Dining Room.

When I arrived, the long and narrow table only had but 3 plates on it.

Facing my parents, Mother unsurprisingly gasped, looking at the temporary red mark on my face, then turned to face my father who nodded.

I assumed he told her all about it.

I took my seat and Dobby, our house elf, handed me a glass of water. I shooed him away to do his own business.

The mashed potatoes and roast chicken on the plated was indeed mouth-watering, but my throat was far too full with things to say to eat.

"Draco, I have something important to discuss with you." My father began.

"What would that be?"

"It involves business relating to the Dark Lord."

"Go on."

"Even since Dumbledore's death, the Order has been growing dangerously suspicious and most of the Death Eaters have been sent to Azkaban," he took a quick sip of his dark wine. "And if we don't act up soon, we will all be gone sooner or later."

"How have you escaped from Azkaban, Father?"

"A couple of fellow Death Eaters helped me out, of course. During the night I was set free, two of them have been caught by Dementors and been locked in."

"How am I involved in this?"

Father swallowed a sufficient amount of roast chicken and wine to last him for a while.

"The Dark Lord and I are hoping that you would help us in the gathering of our comrades and the defeating of the Order," my father turned to my mother then back to me. "And any of those involved."

I took a small spoonful of mashed potatoes and downed it, not knowing what to say. Eating could distract me.

"Draco, dear, are you willing to help your father?" Mother asked, wiping the rim of her glass.

"I'm afraid you don't have a choice, Draco," my father said silkily. "It's either you help or the Dark Lord and I agreed to have you put to death."

"No! Not again! I don't need to be threatened with death by Lord Voldemort once more!" I yelled, my voice bouncing off the relatively empty dining room's walls.

"Lucius, don't you think this is rather far too dangerous...how could you sentence your _own son _to the death-" My mother started.

"Quiet, Narcissa, let me explain this to Draco," he hushed my mother, who now was looking impatient. "Draco, I am asking so little of you. All I need for you to do is to watch those who we suspect is helping or supporting the Order in any way, and come report it to me; more preferably the Dark Lord himself. Besides, you already have the Dark Mark, so this would be a chance to please him-"

"What if I don't _want_ to please him? He can't always control what I do!" I arose from my seat, pounding on the table with my fist.

"Alright then. Can I ask you a simple question, Draco?"

"No one's stopping you," I hissed in between my teeth.

Father let the determination to scream once more pass; gave my mother a worrisome look, and turned back to me.

"That Potter boy...is he involved with the Order?"

"I'm not quite sure if he's _in_ the Order himself, but I do know for a fact that he's one of those who are _supporting _it, Father."

A disruptive pause followed; the only sound in the room being my mother refilling her glass.

"Would that mean that his friends, as well, are supporting them?"

"...What?" I whirled my fork in the mashed potatoes. I didn't understand.

Where was my father going with this?

"I think it would be easier to convince you to help if maybe, perhaps, I'll tell our remaining comrades to go in search of Miss Granger."

I nearly choked on the pieces of ice that floated about in my water, coughing for recovery.

"No!" My hand swung to the side, causing the glass of water to spill on the hard wooden floor.

My mother glared at me with disgust.

"I'm afraid we have no other choice, Draco. If I can't persuade you to battle alongside us, who can but that precious girl of yours?"

Drops of sweat prickled down my neck.

There was no use of speaking another word to either of my parents, so I stormed up to my room, not even bothering to clean the spilled mess.

Slamming the door in fury, a muted scream repeated itself over and over again inside me.

Enraged, I closed the curtains, and pushed the couch in front of my door so entry was prohibited.

With no hint of light, it transformed from a luxurious room to a dark abyss.

The only thing I could see was the wrapping paper; especially the fluorescent glow of Hermione's white ribbons.

I opened the pouch and found a card, a small box, and a bunch of individually wrapped chocolates that smelled of mint.

_Dear Draco,_

_Happy Christmas! I do hope you find my gift to your fancy. And I have something to tell you:_

_Usually my parents would forbid anyone to come over here during Christmas Break unless it's Harry, Ron, or any of the Weasleys - but my parents will be away this weekend to spend some time with their new officemates. So instead of my Mum and Dad being home, my Grandmother will be keeping watch of the house._

_So in short, if you have the time to, you should come along sometime. I'm not sure if your parents would approve, but it might be worth a try._

_Besides, my Grandmother won't notice a thing. She's terribly weak in sight._

_Anyway, I am looking foward to your arrival._

_I love you,_

_Hermione_

There it was. She said she loved me. Right there, in the deep green ink.

I noticed something quite peculiar about the box itself. With all the lights concealed, it seemed like it was _glowing_.

I popped the lid off.

A green-and-silver brooch lay inside, with a serpent in the middle; representing Slytherin. And yes, it was glowing indeed - the silver borders shimmered in contrast to the slow lighting of the emerald parts.

And there was a note inside the lid of the box.

_When all is dark and you cannot see,_

_When all the stars are lost in night,_

_Take hold and grasp me quite firmly,_

_And you will have power to see the light._

Puzzled, I picked up the brooch and squeezed it a bit. It was true, the silver lining flashed madly and the emerald did as well.

And this was the perfect gift. It was almost like Hermione knew this series of events was going to happen.

Because in times like this, it would come in handy.

Especially now. You never know.

It wouldn't be too soon until the Death Eaters would be on their way to look for Hermione - or in other words _kidnap_ her in use for blackmail purposes.

I had to get out of his house. Somehow, I had to get to Hermione. And tell her everything. To rescue her from the clutches of the Dark Lord.

Was I ready to plan this? Yes, I was.

To the extent.

**Yeah. Keep looking back for Hermione's Christmas Break, however - I have all the ideas in my head, so it won't be too long.**

**And...you know what I want after a chapter. Teehee. Thanks!**


	13. Bittersweet Rendezvous

**Here you go, enjoy:) Oh, and one other thing for you people to know - I'm not sure if Crookshanks is a boy or girl; but in this chapter, I'm assuming he's a boy. Sorry for any mistakes! This chapters' kinda long.**

_

* * *

Hermione

* * *

_

"This is the sugar, right?"

"No, no, Grandmother, that's the flour." I took the package away from her hands, replacing it with the correct one.

When it came to baking Holiday cookies, my Grandmother didn't have a chance. Still, it was definitely worth the laugh.

"Tell you what, dear, why don't we pop the first batch into the oven first, then we'll take a break before starting the second one. That sound okay to you, Hermy?"

I recoiled at the sound of '_Hermy_'.

"Okay. That's fine. If you need me, I'll be in my room."

I found my pink slippers under the kitchen table and began to walk towards my room; occasionally sliding on the hard wooden floor.

Once I faced the door of my room, I felt something swift and fluffy sway in between my feet.

"Oh, hello Crookshanks! Let's go inside shall we?"

I turned open the doorknob, let ourselves in, then closed the door and leaned against it.

Taking a deep sigh, I checked my room. Tidy bookshelf. Made bed. Sorted clothes.

Perfect. Not a mess in sight.

The only thing, however, that didn't seem to belong anywhere else, laid in the middle of the sky blue rug.

That glittery pink box. Draco's present.

I haven't opened it yet, I never had the chance to. Yesterday I arrived home late and had a family dinner since my parents would be gone.

Actually, my parents insisted me to open all my other presents yesterday. I didn't show them Draco's because I was afraid they wouldn't be pleased if they've found out it was from him.

For their own reasons.

Walking towards it, I knelt at its side and eyed it carefully. Not wanting to break whatever was inside, I only shook it a little.

But I didn't hear anything rattling or bumping against the box's edges.

Instead, I heard slurred whispering. Not a human voice, but something in there made shushing sounds. Wonder what it was?

"Meeeoowwww!" Crookshanks called from the windowsill.

"What is it?" I placed the box back on the middle of the rug and looked outside the window. "I don't see anything..."

Crookshanks started hissing, his tail puffed up and his ears pointed straight; scrunching his nose.

"What's wrong? Is something the matter?"

I glanced out the window once more.

Still, there was nothing unusual. Just numerous flower bushes and my mothers' fence, like the view always was.

"I don't know what's gotten into you, Crookshanks," I said, petting his head soothingly to calm him down.

The moment my hand was placed on the car, he leaped up and bolted under the bed; tail up high.

I wonder what frightened him so?

Closing the curtains shut, I turned on my lamp and began reading the _Standard Book of Spells: Grade 7_ on my bed. Covering myself in blankets and convinced that I could finally have my own time, I beamed.

In the background, I heard an indistinct doorbell and the opening of a door.

_So much for my own time..._

A couple of moments later my Grandmother opened the room of my door so that only her head was visible.

"Hermy, sweetie, are you expecting any friends from school?"

I snapped my book shut and shoved it under my pillow.

"No...not that I know of..."

"Well, you ought to come over here, there's this young man here to see you."

"Grandma, you're not wearing your glasses. Are you just imagining things again?"

When my Grandmother reached in her pockets to find her glasses, a voice called out from the hallways.

"_Hello?"_

That voice. That was the instant I knew that I _was_ expecting someone.

My grandmother left the room, leaving the door wide open and turned to speak to the stranger.

"_Oh, go ahead dear, let yourself in."_

I ruffled through my blankets and rapidly put the pink glittery box in my drawer. Doing so, I drew out my comb, brushing my hair furiously and stopped when I saw a shadow creeping towards my room.

Black shoes, jeans, black sweatshirt.

"Hello, Hermione."

"Hi."

Draco stepped in my room and glimpsed around, occasionally looking what he was stepping on.

I guess he still wasn't comfortable with even being ina Muggle-born _house_, which I found quite naive.

"How did you get here?" I questioned.

"Oh, you see, I was originally by your window, but then-"

An ear-piercing shriek materialized from under my bed and onto Draco's leg.

Crookshanks.

He clung onto his shins, digging his claws into him, hissing.

Draco let out a cry of pain and attempted to shake Crookshanks off; which of course was unsuccessful. He revovled in countless circles but that only enraged Crookshanks even more.

I walked over, gently separating Crookshanks from Draco.

Crookshanks, now placed in my arms, purred in delight but kept a watchful eye at Draco.

For reasons far tooextraordinary, I started laughing.

"That must explain why Crookshanks made such a fuss earlier. You were out the window!"

"Keep that thing away from me."

He did a ample job of laughing as well.

"Say, why _were_ you outside my window?"

He helped himself and sat on one of my chairs. "I didn't know if anyone was home, so I thought I'd take a peek. Then you closed the curtains so I went to your doorbell."

"Oh."

"Sorry, didn't mean to spy or anything."

"No, don't be. It's okay."

The only sound in the room now was the muffled purring and the wind blowing outside the window. There was still faint signs of Draco laughing, but at this point it died off.

"Oh, love your present, by the way." he said, swishing his bangs off to behind his ears.

"Thanks. Glad you like it."

He gave me a smile in a jiffy, and stood up, observing my belongings.

"Have you opened mine yet?"

"Well...um...no."

"It's fine. Open it whenever you want to. And I almost forgot, I have something very important to discuss with you."

"What's that, Draco?"

My grandmother creaked the door of my room open, a wide grin on her face.

"You two enjoying yourselves?" she chuckled.

Before my cheeks were able to flush, Draco blushed furiously. I thought the sight of it was rather adorable.

"We're...um...fine." I could feel hairs on the back of my neck prickling as I brushed the bangs off my face.

"Well, in that case, I'm going to head over to the grocery and buy us some bread for dinner. Hermy, I know you're a big girl, so take care of yourself and your friend."

I began to grow embarrassed, but Draco gave me a look that seemed to say _I've-had-my-own-fair-share_ so I calmed down a bit.

"Yes, Grandma. Don't forget your glasses."

"I won't, dear. See you later!" She waved goodbye and I heard the door shut.

Draco widened his eyes and laughed a bit. "Don't worry. I'm not laughing at you."

Giving him a weak smile, for I was still abashed, headed towards the hallway, waiting for Draco.

"Say, Draco, why don't we discuss over things while we bake cookies?"

"W-well, um...I've never really _baked_ anything-"

"Good, maybe I can teach you!"

"_Teach_ me?"

"Yeah. Come on, we'll both enjoy it. Trust me."

"If you say so..."

My hand reached to open the refrigerator and I took out the pre-made batter. Laying out all the ingredients on the kitchen counter, I reviewed how many there were.

"Oh...I forgot about the chocolate chips."

"What?" Draco snapped out of his gaze and approached me.

I searched every drawer and cabinet that I could reach, but a bag of chocolate chips were still unfound.

There was, however, the one that was out of my reach.

Stretching to the point I felt a sharp pain in my arms, with a single finger I flapped open the highest cabinet.

And there it was. The bag of Chocolate chips.

Scoffing in irritation, I extended my arms again.

Not only did I reach for it, but Draco did as well.

But I couldn't help but stare at him. With his head tilting up, the white-blonde strands dangling over his eyes, the sleeve of his sweater lowering to his elbow - everything. He couldn't get any more beautiful than he already was, could he?

It appeared that I gazed at him far too long. When he made a final try and stood on his tiptoes with all his might, I did at the exact same time.

Causing a collision. And a fall.

We both stumbled backwards. I squinted my eyes closed, expecting a painful, hard fall on the cold kitchen floor.

But that's not what I got.

Instead, I found myself face-to-face with Draco, and I was on top of him, my hands on his elbows.

His eyes were fixed on mine and our noses were barely in contact with each other.

_What? Is this really happening?_

"Oh, ummm..." I fussed around and detangled my own legs from his and got back to my feet, pretending to wipe dust off my jeans; keeping myself distracted. "...Sorry about that."

I could feel the immoderate heat forming on my face.

"Don't worry, I'm fine," he adjusted his sleeves and took the bag of chocolate chips out of the cabinet. "Here they are."

"Thanks for that."

Draco pulled out a recipe book from beside the sugar, and flipped to '_Chocolate Chip Cookies'_; running his finger down the ingredients area.

"Can I talk to you about something?"

"Sure, of course." I washed my hands in the kitchen sink and added more eggs to the batter.

"I don't want to scare you with this, but..." he closed the recipe book and gradually walked towards me, placing his hands on my shoulder; the other on my waist. "...They're after you."

After cracking two eggs, I mixed them together tardily.

"Who is?"

"Them. The Death Eaters."

In shock, I dropped the wooden mixing spoon on the counter and turned to face Draco.

My lip was quivering and my voice shaking.

"...W-why?"

"Ever since Dumbledore's death, the Order has been overly cautious about the Dark side, resulting to many arrests of Death Eaters. Since there are only a few of them left, my father and the Dark Lord asked me if I could join them, and they said if I disagreed, I would be put to death."

"So what did you do then?"

"I refused."

A twisting pain inside my heart took play, causing a shuddering gasp to free itself.

"...Why?"

"I didn't want to be threatened with death once again. Now, it's even worse."

"How could it be worse than that?"

"My father wasn't too happy with my answer, and he's asking me to report anyone who I find suspicious or anyone who seems to be supporting the Order. He asked me if Potter was involved."

"Did you tell him?"

"Tell him what?"

"That Harry's involved with the Order."

"Well, I _assumed_ he was, so I said that."

"Why?"

"I wasn't thinking at the moment!"

"Oh...okay...go on."

"After I replied to that, he asked me if his friends were with the Order as well. I wasn't sure where he was going with this, then out of nowhere he..."

Draco lowered his head and the light in his face faded.

I held his hands.

"Are you okay? What did your father do?"

"He said that it might have been easier to convince me to help if they would go in search of you."

I started whimpering as if the whole room surrounding me was drifting away. Tears of frustration began to cling to my eyelashes.

I was in danger...

The lump in my throat interfered with my speech.

"And...kidnap me?"

Draco saddened and pulled me into a heart-wrenching hug. I felt something small and wet descend to the top of my head.

Draco's tears. He was crying - _actually_ crying.

"I'm sorry, Hermione," with his hand he began to run his fingers through my newly-combed hair; slow but steadily. "For everything."

"Don't be...we'll find our way out of this."

Embracing him back, happiness began to blossom inside me; although an unbelievable amount of regret still stayed.

"Do you mind if I can stay a little longer than I had planned to?" he whispered to me, his breath brushing againstmy skin; a ticklish sensation.

"Wouldn't your parents be...concerned about where you are?"

"I don't care what they think about me anymore. They've crossed the line; bringing you into this whole mess."

"Okay. You're welcome to stay."

"Thanks."

We released our hold of each other, and the moment we did, the front door opened.

My grandmother took off her shoes at the doormat and set down a bag of groceries on the counter.

I quickly wiped my tears away, letting them fall to the floor, and I saw Draco doing the same in the corner of my eye.

Grandmother, being an amiable woman; formed a smile through her wrinkles.

"I'll leave whatever happened just nowto yourselves."

Draco grinned faintly and we both headed back to my room, before doing so placing the cookies in the oven.

For the rest of that afternoon, and deepening into nighttime, Draco and I talked about the past few years and about our feelings back then. We both agreed that we've had our own fair share of acting immature and selfish, and that it finally left us. A little.

"Sorry to ask...but...do you have anything we could eat?" Draco murmured; his hands in his pockets.

"Oh, yes. Let me go check on the cookies really quick," I arose from my bed and walked towards the kitchen.

I turned on the lights. Grandmother was now sound asleep in her bedroom, and I didn't want to make too much noise.

Arriving, the pleasurable aroma of chocolate chip cookies filled the area, causing me to hurry along to the oven.

I pulled them out with my Mum's favorite green oven mitts.

They were perfectly shaped; the chocolate chips creamy and moist. I placed the cookie tray on the kitchen counter; taking out two plastic pouches and two yellow ribbons from the drawers.

I placed about seven in each of the pouches and tied them up with a ribbon.

For the rest of the cookies, I put them in a bowl for my Grandmother and parents; keeping it in the microwave to ensure freshness.

I returned back to my room.

"Here you are, Draco...I'll have some of our cookies and you can too."

"Thanks for this." He untied the ribbon gently and took a bite out of a cookie. "These are delicious."

"Well, we made it _together_. That makes it extra special."

Draco and I both ate only one cookie; for that was enough to satisfy ourselves at the present time.

"You know...it's kind of odd how that when you we were younger, a cookie could instantly cheer us up."

I had no idea why I was saying this at the moment.

"Really, though. Couldn't agree with you more." Draco tied the ribbon back together.

The atmosphere grew silent an hour later; and Draco fell asleep on my chair, his head slouching down.

But I remained wide awake, and thought to myself - this was the perfect opportunity to open his gift.

So I opened my drawer quietly, not wanting to wake him up, and held the box in my hands once more.

I took off the ribbons and wrapper, to find a small, black box.

When I placed my ear on it, I could hear that cryptic shushing noises again. But this time, it sounded like..._water_?

I was about to pop off the lid, hoping I wouldn't be interrupted _again_, when suddenly -

my lamp clicked and turned itself off. Draco had awakened from the sound it created.

Shocked, I went to turn it back on. It didn't work.

"What happened?" Draco asked, drowsiness still caught in his system.

"Just a blackout. Always happens nowadays."

I returned to my bed and saw the black box laying there.

"Do you hear that?"

Bewildered, I averted and saw Draco, now standing up, with his ear against the door of my room.

"What?"

I followed and stood beside him, putting the box in my pocket for the time being.

And I could hear it.

Some sort of pounding noise came from the hallway.

Scared, I took hold of his hand and slowly opened the door.

Pitch black darkness surrounded us, with no source of light but the moonlight shimmering through various windows.

And there, from under the base of the door, were shadows.

"What the?" was all that I could speak.

Draco started breathing heavily and his palms grew sweaty. We took a quick instant peek outside the window.

Several figures in dark, pointed caps were able to be seen.

"Oh no..." My heart started beating a mile a minute.

"They're _here_...Hermione, let's go, we have to leave, _now_!"

We stormed back into my room. I took out my wand from under my pillow, put on a jacket and my shoes.

"Let's go out through the back," I said calmly,under countless layers of apprehension.

Draco and I ran out the back door and into the backyard. We managed to catch our breath for a minute, until -

"_There they are!_" A fierce voice shouted, as the Death Eaters attempted to push through my mother's wooden fence.

Draco rapidly turned to me, his fingers digging into my shoulders, his eyes as wide as a nocturnal creature; in a cold sweat.

"Hermione, listen to me. You have to go; you have to run where they can't find you. You'll only be in more danger if you're here with me."

Trembling in fear, I shook my head assertively.

"N-no, Draco, I don't want to leave you, I want to _stay_-"

I was cut off. He pulled me closer and his lips crashed onto mine and stayed there for about a second before letting go. A accelerated kiss.

"No, Hermione. I love you and I don't want them taking you away from me. We'll see each other again. I promise."

A sudden crash was heard, and the Death Eaters broke the fence and started running towards Draco and I.

"Now go, GO!" Draco pushed me away from him.

I leaped up as high as I could and made my way over the fence. Behind me, I could hear a cluster of voices and footsteps approaching.

I didn't even bother looking over my shoulder. Tears were already blinding me slightly as I ran with all my might.

Was the area I knew so well would be as respectful as it was in the morning? Or was the dark of the night not so merciful?

I stuck my hand in my pockets, feeling the box and the pouch of cookies, and ran faster as his words replayed in my mind like a neverending movie:

_We'll see each other again. I promise._

**

* * *

...And that's it for this chapter! I hope you liked that :) The next chapter will begin in 3****rd**** person point-of-view and from where this chapter left off. Please review and I hope to get Chapter 13 up soon!**


	14. Taking Captive

**To inform those of you that haven't read the author's note at the end of the previous chapter, this one starts off with 3****rd**** person point-of-view. Also, thank you all very, very much for the reviews! Here you go. :) The chapter's not as long as the previous one, but it should be fine.

* * *

**

The streetlamps flickering through the thin fog began to die out; diminishing the range of eyesight. Streets were empty, the full moon soared in the sky, and anyone could only hope they were taking the right path.

Hermione, still running as fast as her legs could take, began to grow weak as her strength grew frail.

_No, I can't stop now_, she thought to herself, feeling self-pity. _This place isn't safe..._

But she couldn't help herself. Nearby, an inviting bench shadowed under a leafless oak tree.

Walking towards it and finally easing herself, she used her jacket sleeve to wipe the sweat off her temple.

The smell of mist filled her as she looked in all directions.

Not anyone, _anything_ in sight.

She began to worry about everyone.

_I wonder how Draco's doing? What about Grandma? Mum and Dad would be terribly worried...Harry and Ron...Ginny..._

Everyone.

It was no use to only lower her spirits even greater, so she dug into her pockets and pulled out the pouch of cookies and the black box.

Hearing the soothing hushing from the box comforted her as she took off its lid.

A snowglobe.

An enchanted snowglobe.

Inside the globe itself, as if it were alive, swayed the ocean on a welcoming shore; a small marble slab as its base.

Hermione couldn't stop the smile from appearing; signaling that her mood was facilitating up a bit. A lot.

She caught a glimpse of something. Hermione tipped the snowglobe upside down to expose the underside of the marble slab. There, in familiar handwriting, said:

_Promises are promises, Hermione._

_-Draco_

Her hands grew numb; the snowglobe falling into her lap, the ocean moving majestically.

Draco. Why did she have to leave him? Why couldn't she just refuse his request for once?

Hermione started to cry, burying her face into her palms, her tears fleeing through the narrow slits in between her fingers.

But her weeping didn't last for long. She immediately wiped them away and stood up again; merely walking this time.

Her legs grew cold as they treaded through the mist.

"I'll find you, Draco," she said to herself, holding back even more tears. "I will."

She headed back towards where she came from, fearing the future.

* * *

_Draco

* * *

_

"Don't get me wrong, I have not an idea where she is," I bickered. "Besides, you see that Hermione is nowhere near me. I am not an accurate source."

Father took off his hood and yet again pulled me by the collar.

"You will help us track her down. Understand?"

"No." I faltered.

I was expecting it. Once more, he thrust his hand out of his cloak, striking meon the opposite cheek.

The cold wind blowing against it twinged my face persistently.

He walked away from me and towards another Death Eater I didn't recognize.

"He's refusing to help," I heard my father grumble. "What are we to do?"

"We have no choice," the Death Eater answered.

"What are we going to do with the boy?" Another asked.

My father smirked at me immorally and gave a completely unexpected response.

"Just leave him there. He has no chance."

The party of Death Eaters raised their staffs and an enormous puff of smoke concealed them; all of them vanishing once the smoke cleared.

I abruptly grew weak and fell to my knees, completely laid on the ground afterwards.

This was it. I had to find Hermione before Father and the rest of them did.

But I couldn't get up, no matter how hard I tried. The smell of the fresh green grass of Hermione's backyard only longed her presence even more.

_Ha, funny. To ever think that I would ever fall in love with a Mudblood._

But that was the past. Hermione was essential, and I had to get to my feet.

My hand searched my pockets. I felt the plastic pouch and the brooch.

I took out the brooch and pinned it to my sweater. Taking a bite out of an untouched cookie, I could already feel my strength regain.

There was something odd with these little sweets. Any fragility would be pleased enough with a single taste.

Finally standing up, I climbed over the fence and caught a trace of Hermione's footprints in the dirt, slowly disappearing with the power of the night wind.

I followed it slowly as I can just imagine her very condition: She was lost, cold, lonely; feeling like she didn't have a place in the world.

I did, too. The feeling that I wasn't with Hermione, what purpose _was_ there to even be alive?

Blaming myself for everything I was, everything I did, the fog grew thick and I started shivering.

Where _was_ she?

The streetlamps produced barely any light and the dark of the night heightened.

If I adjusted my eyes to the darkness enough, I could just see an outline of a bench and a bare tree.

Hurrying along towards it, hoping Hermione would be near, it came completely into view.

Still, she wasn't there.

I stomped on the ground in anger and sat down, hoping to calm myself. She wasn't too far away, I could just feel it.

And I was correct.

There, on the ground, like it was laid there a couple of minutes ago, was a plastic pouch of cookies.

Hers.

Walking over to it, not too far away from the bench, I picked it up. The pouch was still sealed with the streaming ribbons.

Next to them, laid an unfamiliar golden locket.

She's been here. But why did she drop them?

Maybe she didn't drop them intentionally. Maybe...

They found her. Worried, I shoved the pouch and necklace in my pockets.

Pacing, running, _sprinting_ - through the fog I went; unaware if any obstacles stood before me.

But that didn't matter to me now. This entire crisis _was_ the obstacle. I thought that perhaps, maybe I could apparate?

Before I had any chance to, however, I heard a scream. A girl's scream.

The shriek came from behind, and it was no passerby's scream, either. Unhesitatingly, I changed directions and called out.

"Hermione!"

No response. All I could hear was footsteps.

But then, it came, faster than I could sense it -

"_Draco!"_

Reacting quickly; I ran towards the voice and caught a blurred glimpse of her hair, inducing me to speed up. Indeed I grew tired, but I couldn't stop now. She was so close, and yet so far.

The brooch didn't help me as much as I hoped it would at the moment - the fog was far too strong.

I screamed, at the top of my lungs, once more.

"Hermione!"

She started shrieking, and now I could clearly see she was being held by the hand by a Death Eater; being pulled away with the blink of an eye.

"Get your hands off her!" I demanded, still keeping a pace.

"Draco!" she reached her other hand out, stretching it to the point I could see pain wretched along her face.

Running and extending my arm out wasn't that simple, especially with a great loss hot on my trail.

Just when I was about to grab hold of her, _just _when our fingers took contact -

Hermione released one final scream, and with another series of smoke blocked my eyesight.

"No-"

They were gone. I was too late.

"NO!" I clenched my head in my hands, digging my fingers into my skin in rage, falling to my knees.

This time, it was nearly inconceivable for me to rise back up.

I felt like a failure. I've failed all my chances.

_

* * *

Hermione

* * *

_

_Have you ever seen the ocean, Hermione?_

_So, that's love from you isn't it?_

_No, Hermione. I love you and I don't want them taking you away from me._

_Draco_...Draco...where are you? I couldn't hear his voice...see his face...smell his perfume...feel his touch...nothing.

Something cold and sturdy encircled my wrists, straining them. My eyelids fluttered open and the first thing in sight was a gray wall.

My body completely awakened and I got to my feet - but something was holding me back.

Chains.

"Huh...?" I turned around to see that, in fact, my wrists were cuffed with rusty chains. Not only my hands, but my ankles as well.

Every time I managed to move the metal would rub against my skin; allowing unbearable pain to duplicate itself.

Crying at an unsteady flow, the hard uneven ground began to prod into my knees. I've lost the cookies and the necklace Ginny gave me.

What did I do to deserve this cruel, twisted fate? If life wasn't considered a game why were there so many players? Luck and opportunity were turning its backs on me.

I was on the losing side.

I would very much rather laugh together with Draco than cry over him.

And I even thought I would forget how everything felt like if I was kept in this prison any longer.

I missed the sunlight welcoming me like a nice cool breeze on a hot summer's day. Drinking Butterbeer with Harry and Ron in the Three Broomsticks, sinking in emotional bliss every time I looked at him, the feeling of freshly cut grass - _everything_. I felt the lack of it all.

The thought of Draco was killing me slowly with every glance, every word; every memory. Maybe the reason Draco and I had hated each other is because we couldn't face the fact that we were in love.

At least I was.

I couldn't stop crying for his sake. And I probably even crossed his mind...I stopped for a second to think but his thought kept going on.

The only thing I could do was hope he would come back and follow my footsteps. To succeed with that chance to be my knight in shining armor.

But, history was history. You could never take it back.

Through all the madness ringing in my ears, I began to make out the sound of footsteps. Wiping off my tears resentfully, I sat up straight like nothing had ever happened.

On the other side of the door, I could hear furious rambling going on about.

"_No, you listen to me, search for him. He can't be too far out."_

Draco...he was in peril.

The door opened and light pranced its way inside, but it didn't stay for too long.

For in the shadows stood Lucius Malfoy, the last person I wanted to confront. The most unkind man under the Dark Lord himself.

"Good evening, Miss Granger." He set his cane on the ground, the sound resounding off the lifeless walls.

Hatred entered my system and I couldn't even stand to look at his livid face. I turned away.

"Interested about Draco's wanderings, now, are we?"

If only I could wipe that smirk off his face, blame him for everything that has happened, and leave this misery.

If only I could. But my feeble courage had taken over. I was far too scared to make any moves.

"He doesn't have a chance surviving out there on his own. He has indeed, suffered a great loss, and my associates should rid of him sooner or later."

What...?_ I couldn't believe what he was saying!_

"But...how could you? Draco...he's...your own son!"

"He's already disobeyed me enough. First he decided to take the unwise choice in his sixth year to refuse to fulfill the Dark Lord's needs. Now, may I point out, he's been tricked into the tomfoolery of love with no one else but a _Mudblood_."

"...You'll _never_ defeat the Order." Compressing my fists; I embraced my knees, rolling up into a little ball.

"Ha, I'm afraid you are wrong there, Miss Granger. I can just see it - The Order will slowly fall apart...with the main support of it all gone. Albus Dumbledore...what a fool of a man."

He was taking a dare, wasn't he? First he blackmails his own son, threatens him with death, and now he's insulting the name of Dumbledore in front of me?

"It won't be too long. You'll see your beloved one soon," he raised his cane and made his way out of the door, before leaving said some final words. "If I don't change my mind."

The door was slammed shut, the locks put back in place, and the thick sound of the outside wind resumed its slow humming.

From the snowglobe inside my pocket, I could just feel the sand purifying with the love of the ocean.

But, if it enchanted me in such a way, why was it I couldn't stop crying?

* * *

**Okay. That's it for Chapter 13! Yeah, it's 12:11 in the morning and I'm pretty tired. I'll see if I can finish Chapter 14 and upload it before Saturday, for I will be out most of the day. I don't know if I'm going to be able to have access to the internet on Sunday, but I'll see. Hopefully it'll all work out.**

**Please review and thank you very much for your time!**


	15. Separate Ways and Undivided Love

**Okay, since I'm going to be out most of the day tomorrow, I bring you an update that I started today and finished today. Whew. Took a while to finish, but here it is anyway! Hope you like it. Not as long; mostly dialogue.**

_

* * *

Hermione

* * *

_

Morning wasn't much different as the night was. The cheerless atmosphere of the dungeon enclosed me like fireflies without their light; I wondered how long I was going to survive here.

The only thing that seemed to lull me was the inaudible whispers of the snowglobe; murmuring like some sort of lost lullaby.

A whole nightfall of crying and no food started to set its consequences. My throat grew sore, my wrists and ankles sprained, and my eyes emotionless.

Even my thoughts didn't continue to appear. A dreamless night clearly wasn't a good sign for the incoming.

I was shut out from the whole world.

But my hope didn't seem to die out like everything else. I knew Draco was intensified, and that he was out there - it appeared that either of us grew lethargic rapidly without the aid of the other.

It was impossible for me to escape from the wreck of the day; I was falling to pieces, and I was on the verge of giving up.

Giving up my life, even.

I was desperately close to the end; but if only I could see Draco once more. I could, supposedly, leave the world satisfied.

A lingering headache throbbed on my temple, and I was convinced that I yet ran out of tears.

And then, as if I hadn't perceived it before, a focus of voices could be heard from the other side of the door.

"_Desperate?"_

"_Shut up!"_

"_Not very friendly now, are we?"_

"_Where is she? Where's Hermione? Take me to her!"_

"_Patience is a virtue, boy, you're already right here."_

The sound of locks opening and doorknobs being turned didn't cease to follow.

When the door creaked open, I managed to fully open my eyes to see the woeful body being thrown on the cold floor. Afterwards, the door slammed closed.

He coughed, and a flock of dust retreated.

"...D...Draco?" I said vaguely.

He tilted his head to the side and his eyes brightened.

"Hermione!"

Draco slowly got up and knelt in front of me, his palms cupping my face.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

I cleared my throat; my voice still unclear.

"I...I'm fine." I lied.

He swallowed in guilt, his eyes restless and bulging.

"Your skin...you're so cold...and these chains..."

I lowered my head to look at the red marks illustrated on my skin.

"Draco...please tell me..."

"Anything."

"...Where is this place?"

He darted closer to me, embracing me with one arm; the other laid across his leg.

"I was taken here," he overviewed. "All I could remember was walking through the fog; severely being hit on the back of head. I guess I must have went unconscious for a while. When I awakened, I was in the hallway. Not too long after that I was taken here."

"What's it like...outside of this room?"

"Not much better than you might think it is. I'm assuming this is some sort of headquarters Father and the rest of them reside in..."

My eyelids grew heavy and I had the dying temptation to sleep, but I didn't want to waste the remaining time I had with Draco.

The snowglobe glistened.

"So you've opened it," Draco coaxed, staring at the gift. "Like it?"

I spoke softly through my dry lips.

"Yes...the best present anyone's ever given me."

He grinned and then rattled me slightly, sending the life back into me.

"Is there any way we can get out of here?" I questioned, afraid of what might happen.

"I'm sorry, but I'm afraid not...they took away my wand when I woke up. Yours?"

"...Mine is gone as well."

Draco shook his head in wonder and his face beamed.

"Oh, I almost forgot something."

"What is it?"

From his pockets, he pulled out my pouch of cookies and my locket.

"I found them along the way. Is this necklace yours?"

"Thank you so much for finding it...I thought I lost it..."

He pressed the bag of cookiesonwhere my heart was.

"Don't let them see it. They might take it away from you."

"Okay."

After a serial period of muffled laughter, the excitement drifted away temporarily.

His face grew somber and weary. Because of that, I couldn't even see his next question coming.

"Do you love me, Hermione?"

"Of course I do." This time I was able to control the redness flashing across my skin.

And I could sense it, he was slowly pulling me into a kiss.

"Draco, what-"

"Ssh."

Maybe I should just go with it. Besides, our first kiss was a bit rushed, so this would be the perfect opportunity.

The only thing I found better than the kiss itself was the brief moment before it, when the look in his eyes left me completely breathless.

I leaned back, against the wall and he leaned closer, one of his hands placed on the small of my back, the other dug into my hair.

"You! Your father wants you. Get out."

A voice roared; the door swished open, just before we our lips were in tangency.

Draco moved away from me, but only remotely.

"Why don't you tell him to wait?" he quarreled. "I'm sure he has enough prattling to do with other people-"

"-GET OVER HERE!"

I cowered as he was slowly being pulled away by his sleeve.

"Hermione! I'll talk to you later-"

"Shut up!" The Death Eater outcried, attempting to pull him out the door.

Draco gaped at him menacingly and turned back to face me; the lock of our glances not lasting long.

"No, Draco, don't-" I gasped.

With one final glimpse of his slate gray eyes, I was once again confined; forlorn in every possible feeling.

"Let me go!" I screamed to no one, demanding my expectations. I pulled myself up, and no matter how much it hurt, I tried to pull myself away from the grip of the chains.

Tears surged out and broke in contact with the dirty ground. My hair burrowed my face and I plummeted to the bottom.

My entire body sore and fatigue, my nails scratched on top of the floor, my face covered in dust.

I wished I had an excuse for Draco to stay; besides the fact that I loved him with all my life.

_

* * *

Draco

* * *

_

They led me down the hallway to a room where my father was waiting.

If I had the chance to escape I would, but unfortunately they were right on my tail; staring at me with those god-awful eyes.

Although it was indeed morning, the torches remained lit, providing warmth throughout the whole building.

Except the dungeons where Hermione currently inhabited.

I was ready to face Father; to reason him out for everything he did.

At the very end of the hall, stood a wooden door with a steel serpent as the handle.

"Your father's waiting in the there." One of the Death Eaters uttered.

"I know _that_," I snapped.

The other Death Eater stepped it front of me, scoffing, and opened the door a bit. I couldn't see what was inside.

"Lucius, your son is here."

"Let him in," his voice verbalized.

The Death Eater shoved me into the room and closed the door shut behind me; guarding it.

Inside this room was much different than that of the dungeon's. There was a black marble table in the middle of the room, a deep green rug laying under it, and a small window in the back. The light peeked over my father's, cold glaring eyes.

What did he _think_ he was, the Dark Lord himself?

"Come, sit." he pulled over a chair across from him.

I walked over to the chair and placed myself down, glaring at him furiously but evenly.

"What do you want with me?" I glowered.

"Now, Draco, I don't want to have to get into another argument again."

I laughed tauntingly.

"Even if we did, Father, you would still be blamed for it."

My father circled around, shooting a ferocious glare at me, pounding his cane hardly against the table, only a few inches away from where I was.

I quivered from the sudden movement.

"Quiet, Draco. Now listen to me. If you want that girl to be freed, you must agree to join me. I don't want you to-"

"Father, how much more help do you need? Look out there! Your freakishly large group of Death Eaters are all there for you, how much more do you want?"

He set his cane to the ground this time, thumping it on the floor even more fiercely.

"Those you see out in the halls don't count. That is not merely enough," Father encircled the table and stood by the window. "It's not difficult at all, Draco. Either you help me or your loved one stays here to suffer. Perhaps even her friends will pay the price as well."

I obviously didn't care about _Potter_ and the rest of them, but if I didn't act quickly, Hermione's whole life might be ruined because of one ill-advised move I made.

"...Hermione...she...she's going to die in there, isn't she?" I asked fearfully.

But the fact that she could eat thesweets and survive longer gave me more time to think of an escape plan.

"Well, what do you think will happen without food and water? That is, she will either perish or survive, it's all depending on your choice."

Silence.

My father sat back on his chair and placed his elbows on the table.

"I'm waiting," he said, raising a brow.

I preplanned things quickly. If I said no and refused to accompany him, Hermione's life would end in an instant. But if I said yes...

"Okay," I said, a quaver traveling up my voice. "I've made my choice."

"Excellent. And what would that be?"

My shoulders twitched and the back of my neck wentnumb, and I spoke.

"I'll help you. Only if you promise to set Hermione free."

Father pondered for a moment, sneering threateningly.

"Very well. She will be released after our discussion."

"...And...give her wand back."

He looked at me incredulously and laughed.

"Oh, no, no, Draco. I'm afraid that is too much for you to benefit from. I've already agreed to set her free. I would still be in possession of her wand."

"That's rubbish! She can't survive out there without a wand!"

"Rubbish it may be; do you honestly think I care about that dear girl's life? She is not my responsibility, and neither is she yours."

I winced.

"Now, let us go to the dungeon. I want you to be there when she is set free."

Father stood up quickly, opened the door and made his way down the hall. I followed and the Death Eaters did as well.

Once in front of the dungeon door, Father looked at me.

"Open it."

Hesitating, hands shaking, I unlocked the door and let light in.

Hermione, laying on the floor, her eyes heavy with regrets turned to look at me.

"Draco...y-you're back..."

A Death Eater behind me nudged me inside, giving me the keys to the chains.

Quickly, I leaned beside her, letting her free from the rusty metal.

"...You're...setting me free.." she crooned.

My breathing grew uneven and I whispered to her so that she was the only one able to hear.

"Hermione...you know how I told you promises were promises?"

"Yes, I remember."

"Well," I held her by the hands and waist and helped her up. "I'll promise we'll see each other again. I will get out of here as soon as I can."

"Wait, you're setting me free but you're staying here? Why?"

From the doorway, my father hissed. "Hurry up!"

Hermione and I followed my father and the Death Eaters outside, where a gate was opened, the area was unfamiliar and the skies were gray. A small forest could be seen in the distance.

"...Go, Hermione. You have to go."

She raised her chin and looked at me with her irresistible chocolate eyes.

"I can't leave without you."

Father heard her determination to stay and pushed her to the dirt.

"Leave, you Mudblood. And don't come back!"

"Father, let me speak to her before-"

He shoved me aside.

Hermione weakly got to her feet and started to walk away, her clothes and face smothered with dirt. I could hear her choking on tears, her arms dangling in frailty.

"Goodbye, Hermione." I whispered to myself.

She looked over her shoulder and gave me a tearful smile; my own eyes watering themselves.

Father and the Death Eaters made their way inside and closed the gate; Hermione was no longer in my range of eyesight.

I stayed where I was.

"Hurry in, Draco."

Averting towards the entrance, I kept my eyes fixed on the ground in disgust.

"Yes, Father."

He proceeded back inside.

It was that gate - somehow I had to leave this torturous place and reunite with her.

Goodbye didn't necessarily mean we'll never see each other again, didn't it?

**

* * *

That's it! I hope you enjoyed reading that chapter. :) I don't know when I'm going to be able to update next, hopefully by Sunday or Monday (the 23****rd**** or the 24****th****.) Anyways, thank you very much for your time and please review!**


	16. Parallel Heartaches

**Sorry**** for the wait! It took me a really long time to get off my butt and set aside everything else. Plus the fact that the login on has been disabled for a while (for me and many others). This chapter might not be the most satisfying, but I hope you still like it! Thank you very, very much for the supportive reviews! Oh, and before you read, this story does have a 3****rd**** person point-of-view in it, just not at the beginning. Instead, the heading 'Narration' will display its start. Hope it's not too confusing.

* * *

**

_Hermione

* * *

_

The thickets of trees and gatherings of bushes provided little space for me to squeeze through; the branches poking out of their long stumps brushed against my legs.

Obviously desperate for a place to rest, my eyes traveled askew. Still, there was precisely no sign of anyone or anything that appeared to be, even the nominal bit, relatively familiar.

Only the sounds of eager, chirping birds and wind creeping through the confined spaces of branches were to be heard.

Indeed it was late afternoon, I've been heading deeper and deeper into the forest ever since I was released. Not a clue where I was, and still without a wand, I began to lose hope in everything.

I had no idea how long my legs could keep pace with my desires, but I gave it another go, running this time.

What was I doing? Was this all for the best? I was the one who decided for us to live this way, but what for?

Glistening in the cold sweat of guilt, I couldn't keep on like this. The trees could go on for miles; stretching far more than I could possibly do in my current state.

I was a hopeless, faithless, lost girl. Whether anyone could save me or not, this was as bad a time as any.

And I wished for Draco incredibly. I missed the feeling of his touch; the graceful sway of his hair.

I wanted to read his skin like braille until there were no stories anymore.

If this was the ultimate game of Hide and Seek, I was losing. The level of excitement and the pleasures of finding your long-lost one slimmed down to one in a million.

Weak at my knees, my eyesight blurry and my cheeks toned from exhaustion, I allowed my body to work on its own and descended upon the ground.

An efficient, even feeling began to tingle the roughness of my skin.

This wasn't the merciless Earth floor I knew so well. Whenever I attempted to back up, crumpling noises would take play below me, small sharp edges forming on its sides.

Straining to ascend once more, I finally got up and looked down.

A folded piece of beige paper laid on the ground, crinkled from my weight.

Feeling the rich texture on its surface soothed my fingertips, as if I had never felt anything so relieving in a long time.

I unfolded it, and was immediately speechless.

_MISSING_

_Last Seen: December 26__th__, after Christmas_

_Two young teenagers, Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy, students of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, had bizarrely disappeared within the previous couple of days. Should their appearance be familiar to you or if they were in sight, please send an owl to the Ministry immediately. _

_Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic_

In the far right of the flyer, was an enchanted, moving picture my parents had taken of me on Christmas day. Opposite of that stood an unfamiliar picture of Draco with a scarf and dark clothes, his smirk still flat on his pointed face.

Everyone was concerned. Anyone could be tracking us down, and from this point I knew that Draco was in danger.

If the Ministry found out about the gathering place of the Death Eaters, his life could be in terrible stake.

I myself know that I am on the good side, but the one I loved dearly was on the bad, and I had to help him out of the situation.

But he wanted me to stay safe. If I turned back now and arrived back at the tower, they might find me again. Worse, they could just grasp the very soul out of my body with the flick of a wand.

Caught in between two choices, I couldn't just merely wriggle myself out of this.

I had to do something. Draco could die out there.

Finding it hard to turn around and keep a steady pace forward, I slowed myself down, taking my time. Dry leaves and dead weeds underneath my feet crumbled as I began my path to regret.

My footsteps in the dirt, now slightly concealed, eased me a bit as I wandered back through the trees of the unknown.

And I took the sign with me, to show Draco, because I knew that he would have some interest with it.

Hopeless, faithless girl no more. But I was still lost. Without a wand and protection, I was unsure about the things just waiting out there for me.

_

* * *

Narration

* * *

_

The anomalous smell in the dungeons brought desolation to the hallways. Odds and ends made way and there was no Death Eaters wandering about there; only to be around the rest of the building.

Draco meandered around the tower a bit, and managed to find a fairly large window. He thrust it open, feeling nature's breeze eagerly dance across his face from the skies itself. Finally seeing the outside world after demoralizing hours, an expression shines on his face, more mildly interested than surprised.

But the world outside had not much to show him accompanying the refreshing winds. Presented instead was the gloomy gray skies, patterned with its dead white cousins, the clouds; the land with few color. The forest which the girl strayed in waited for him to come and save her.

It was obsession afraid to be admitted, and he knew that if he couldn't be with her soon, disaster might strike upon their bondage again. Not being able to take it any longer, he shut the windows and began to walk through the halls glumly.

He knew that he had no interest in serving the Dark Lord. Or was he just hiding it so everyone would fear him?

"Psst," whispered a voice from behind a stone pillar.

Draco swished his head around, the blonde bangs lining across his forehead. He didn't say a word.

"_Psst_, Draco. Over here."

Any voice silenced to the greatest bit would be unrecognizable to him. He approached the large stone pillar and kept his distance.

A cloaked figure stepped out, strands of dark hair poking out of their hood. The shadows towering over their face concealed their eyes, nose, and lips.

Curious by all means, Draco looked at them, baffled.

"Who are _you_-?"

"Ssh, just follow me into the dungeons," they insisted as their arm reached out of their sleeves and pulled him by his own. "Hurry."

Draco wasn't entirely sure if he should listen to this person, but what else would he do at the moment besides contemplate about Hermione's condition?

They pushed the door open, that dry sour smell wafting through the air. The door locks clicked shut, and they were finally inside.

The slim cloaked figure crossed their arms and cocked their head to the side, occasionally tilting their head up and down, observing Draco.

"_What_?" he asked, not too fond of them staring attentively.

"Nothing...you just look so unhealthy from the Draco at school. What happened to you?"

He looked at them scornfully.

"Do you mind telling me _exactly_ who you are?" he emphasized.

The individual let out a sigh and tugged their dirty, dark sleeve. They remained the way they were, concealed and caged under the disguise of the long robes.

"I'm waiting,." Draco snarled.

"For what?"

"For _you_ to show _me_ who you really are."

"Oh, all_ right_."

Letting a hand out of their sleeve, long, slender fingers emerged with green polished fingernails. A silver ring wrapped around their ring finger, and they pulled down their hood.

Draco gawped at her, not believing what he was seeing.

"What are _you_ doing here?"

_Draco_

Was I missing something here? If I was, I'd very much like to know what happened behind my back.

"Now you see me, alright? Come on, we have to get you out of here," she ordered, her hands gesturing to open the door. "I've got your wand, by the way. Here, see?"

She pulled it out of her cloak pockets and handed it to me.

"Thanks for that...but still," I stuffed my wand into my pocket for later use. "Pansy, why are you here? You never told me you were a Death Eater."

"I'm not," she scoffed. "Actually, my father is considering to let me become one, but I don't think I'm...well...ready. So instead, I came over here to get you out."

"How did you get in? Didn't the guards see you?"

"My father had indeed told them that I would be coming to speak with the Dark Lord about consideration of becoming a Death Eater, but of course, I didn't follow that. I brought some mangy old cloak to hide myself, then I ran into you."

"...I can't believe I didn't recognize your voice."

She turned away from my gaze, staring at the ground, mumbling something that sounded like: _Well, maybe because you haven't been speaking to me._

"Exactly why were you trying to save me?" I asked, curious for her act.

Pansy extended her arms out of her sleeve, ruffling through a wide pocket in her robes. Crinkling and folding noises took play, and once she found what she was looking for, a folded, dirty piece of paper emerged out of her fists.

She unfolded it and I took it from her, my eyes not believing what they were seeing, my heart racing a mile a minute.

"The Ministry's looking for you and Hermione," Pansy adjusted her collar. "People from our school have begun worrying, too. Especially _Daphne_ and all them..."

"I wonder why," I snapped sarcastically. "And, if you are planning to get us out of here, Hermione's still lost, and I'm still without a wand."

"That second problemof yours is alreadysolved," Pansy pointed out matter-of-factly. From the same large pocket in her robes, she pulled out my wand; looking good as new.

Gently taking it from her, I gazed down at it as if I've never seen anything so awe-inspiring. I stuffed it in my pocket for later use, and hoped that the brooch Hermione gave me would come in handy later.

"Thanks for that," I spoke, shifting my weight from one foot to the other, pondering the near future. "Now, how are we to get out of here?"

"...I guess we could just slip out of here unnoticed?"

"You mean you haven't even_ planned_ our escape yet?"

"Well, I didn't really have time, I was more focused on _getting_ here."

Unbelievable. Shaking my head in frustration, supporting it with my hands, I walked slowly toward the door; Pansy following me. Indeed there was that one window, but I couldn't just jump out.

Pansy shuffled her way in front of me, and I scooted back. She pushed open the door slightly, her head poking out of the crack of the door; her eyes peeping out, patrolling the hallways. She stayed in that position for a while, making sure that no one was currently located.

"No ones there, Draco," she remarked. "Where do you want to leave?"

"Well, there's the gate, we could always leave through there," I suggested. "But wouldn't Father and the rest of them spot us?"

"Let's have a go at it."

Moments later, Pansy and I had managed to creep through the doors of the buildingabundant with Death Eaters. The gate stood like it always was, the atmosphere around it deserted and quiet.

"Do you think there's some sort of spell to open it?" Pansy whispered, not wanting her voice to be exposed to anyone else.

"Dunno, I-"

Cut off by some intermittent noise of footsteps, I averted and felt my feet beginning to powerwalk foward, wanting to abate punishment.

"There they are, after them!" A Death Eater screamed at the top of his lungs, pointing accusingly of Pansy and I.

Pansy immediately sprinted towards the gate, crashing into it in the process, and to my surprise; pushed it open.

"Draco, run! Go! The forest is over there!" She bellowed at the side of my face as we kept running. "I'll see you back at school okay?"

Before I could thank her or say farewell, she took an opposite route and began to run with all her might to nowhere.

The forest was drawing closer and closeras the screaming of the Death Eaters begun to fade; their bodies and faces only but inifinitesimal specks in the distance, or as far as my eye could see.

But in the way of the old green trees stood a thin figure, trembling from standing and falling to the ground with a gasp of life still beating in them monotonously.

Rushing over to them, the soles of my feet pounding against the rugged ground, I held her nearly lifeless body in my arms.

"Hermione...Hermione...are you okay? Speak to me!"

Her eyelids fluttered for a moment, but ended up closing shut.

* * *

**Yeah, again, sorry it took me SO SO long to update, the CAT 6 at my school is coming up, the schoolwork is bugging me, I have a play to perform soon and my computer's officially screwed. I don't know when I'm going to update next, but I will try to make sure it won't be as long as this one. Hope you liked it, although** **it wasn't the longest. Please review!**


	17. Promises are Promises, Hermione

**Here's another update. The CAT 6 and schoolwork are taking a buttload of my time...Sorry they're taking quite long nowadays, but I will finish this story no matter what. Thank you all again for all the reviews, and I hope you like this chapter (although it is rather short)!**

* * *

Hermione

* * *

Blurry with sleep, my eyes survived only for the last bit as I saw an unclear image of his face, screaming to knock the life back in me, but I couldn't hear a thing. Soon only a mixture of colors was comprehensible, the outline and features of his face diminished into nothing and sleep had taken over me. 

But even if I wasn't awake, I could tell I wasn't resting. I could feel myself being taken somewhere; the movement unsteady, and thebitter windswirling against my skin. A familiar warmth kept me comfortable in this temporary refuge as I perceived that I was being carried; I was going to get taken to yet another unfamiliar world.

No dreams today. An unpleasant mind trip took a route towards me; and negative thoughts started to race through my mind. What if I never saw Harry, Ron or my parents ever again? Would I never find my way home? And Draco...

_Draco_. The very boy that I yearned to wake up to right now; to embrace, to kiss. But I could tell that all that was far from my reach now; as far as to the moon and back. There were times, however, where I could be wrong. I've been called the brightest witch of my age, but love was still quite a challenge for me as it was to everyone else.

I wanted all the busy streets of London; a mess of people, and the smell of morning coffee and rush hour. The falling snow descending onto the dark rough roads covered in sleet, the flickering lanterns and the beautiful dresses that stood behind the prisoning glass in their mannequins, waiting to be taken home. The cheerful old man by the bakery, and the path to the park that I used to always stroll around when I was a little girl. I haven't been to that park ever since because I've become too much of a bookworm.

_"Wake up, wake up!"_

My body could tell that I was lying on a different surface. A different atmosphere. This wasn't the forest. But I kept myself as I was; I wasn't about to wake up to a complete stranger in this kind of place.

The familiar feeling of water splashed my face and seeped in through my lips and into my mouth; my eyes shot open. I've almost forgotten the taste of water, and the touch of it felt heavenly, and I wasn't quite expecting to be welcomed with open arms.

"Hermione...you're awake!"

Coughing, my physical health better than it was before, I cleared my throat and rubbed my eyes simultaneously until I felt strong enough to scoot foward to stand up, but Draco stopped me.

"Don't stand...you're too weak."

One last cough passed and I raised my hands from resting on the unmerciful ground. Reaching my arms out and encircling them around his neck and shoulders, I discovered myself beginning to sob and the warmth from his body composed every movement and emotion of contentment.

"Draco...what...what _happened_?" I asked, my voice quavering as I ran my fingers through my hair, trying to get every leaf and twig out of it.

He gently pulled a stem of a flower out of my hair and patted the dust and dirt laying on my shoulders. Gripping me tightly and gazing at me with the steady gray eyes of his, he gave me a strained whisper.

"That's right...Pansy didn't seem to find your wand..."

"_Pansy_?" What on earth was he talking about?

"...Yes, she was the one who let me escape, she managed to find my wand somewhere," Draco pulled his wand out of his back pocket, allowing me to observe it carefully. "I don't think yours was anywhere in sight..."

My lip quivered as I reviewed over all the complications that I would have to go through without a wand. Danger was at every turn, but one wand perhaps may be quite a help.

"Apparate us out of here," Escaping the faint grip I stood up, the pebbles on the ground prickling on what was now my bare feet. "Somewhere safe."

The look written all over Draco's face told me that he should've thought of it earlier, but more was coming back to me.

"Draco? Where do you want to go?" I asked, anticipating his response.

An uncanny moment of silence drew upon us, but inside I was bursting withexcitementfor the futureand brilliance.

"I've got an idea." Draco smirked a crooked but sure smile, pulled me closer to him, and with the flick of a wand, we were gone.

* * *

_Narration_

* * *

Through an abyss of nothingness they went, and when a flashing light came upon them, they were where he wanted them to be. He maneuvered behind her; conceal her sight temporarily with welcoming warm palms, covering her eyes to entice her to wonder. Hermione giggled to the slightest bit as she reached her arms out, hoping to lay her hands on any familiar substance to give out wherever she was. Soft ground soothed the rough soles of her bare feet, the wind blew, tracing across her face with no sound of leaves swaying in the distance, and an unfamiliar smell rose up into the air, captivated and spellbinding every pleasing emotion.

"Draco, where are we?"

He let out a sustained laugh of glee as if he had been hiding it the whole time.

"You'll see."

Hermione boiled with excitement as she managed to let Draco lead her foward in this unexplored place, nearly falling on this alien soil, being catched just in time. She walked foward gradually and heard a familiar whispering noise.

Her mouth opened wide, the answer finally leaning in within her grasp; her reach, she let it come to her as she let it out of her secret.

"Draco...are we at the..."

The whispering from hislips onto her eartickled against Hermione's fair skin as if it were a whole new feeling. She winced and showed signs of pleasure.

"Ready for it?"

She squealed quietly, biting her lip, impatient for what was about to revealed to her hungry eyes. Ceasing the temptation to jump up and down, she controlled whatever increased inside her and spoke softly.

"Yes."

Draco slowly slid his hands away from her eyelids, his fingertips brushing her soft skin as her face brightened and she gasped; appalled. Hermione trembled, not believing what she was seeing as she experienced a completely new feeling.

She started to run foward rapidly, dancing in circles, allowing the wet sand by the ocean's shore to seep in between her toes; a ticklish sensation that she laughed with. The smile on her face was permanent as she jumped with glee like a child who had just earned the privelege to sit in the front seat. Rotating her body and darting across the cold ocean water; she cried tears of happniess.

Draco approached her, taking off his shoes and socks to allow his own feet to feel comfort from the grateful sand.

"You like it?" He asked, her back faced to him.

The ocean's waves now rose to reach Draco; the both of them now embraced in the arms of its essence. Hermione turned around, her clothes now damp from her stomach down. Her bushy hair flew the opposite direction of her face from the wind, and she put her hands behind her, fiddling with her fingers.

"Draco...," she began, striding through the calm current as she made her way towards him. "...No one else has ever made me feel more alive in my life. I don't know what I could ever do in return..."

Now standing directly in front of him, Hermione clutched his open palms and held them, staring directly into the soft gray eyes of his. Draco couldn't help but redden and flinch, but other than that, this was all he could ever ask for. Hermione let go of his hands after they seemed to both be satisfied, and with a tackling embrace she wrapped her arms around his neck, nearly knocking him over.

"Thank you, Draco. For the protection; for everything. For keeping your promise."

"Promises are promises, Hermione."

Draco placed his own arms around her back, caressing her with the stroking and taming of her bushy hair. Droplets of water sprinkled out of it and sunk into the water-spattered sand.

And with a voice without any signs of regret; silent but clear like a lullaby, Draco responded.

"Hermione, I don't think I could ever love you more."

He felt her grasp around him tighten in thanks and her joyful tears run down the edge of his neck.

"I love you." she said.

And in exchange for the embrace, he pulled her away from him, firmly planted his hands on her shoulders, thedetermination growing in between them as her brown eyes gazed against his own; his trademark smirk still faintly etched across his face. Hermione leaned closer and Draco followed; their bangs and noses made contact, leading to a full uninturrupted kiss.

They didn't stop for minutes; but neither of them were able to tell exactlydue to the passion they were sharing. His hands around her waist and hers still encircled around his collarbones, they remained where they were as the ocean watched behind them. The wind blew their hair as if fast enough to fly, as forever was always changing and they cherished its temporary form.

Finally releasing themselves, they took a sufficient amount of breaths as Draco rocked her slightly side to side in his arms; Hermione's back now pressed against his chest as they shifted back and forth with theharmony of the breeze.

"...Want to dance?" Draco asked out of nowhere, his chin rested on top of her head as he let in the familiar scent of Hermione, enjoying every bit.

Hermione didn't answer with a word, but with yet another laugh as she got to her feet, running toward the waves, pulling and guiding Draco through the water with her hands. Once their bodies were halfway submerged in the water, she leaped up, one of her hands reaching for his shoulder and the other to his hand. Draco wrapped his hand around the right side of her waist and began moving.

The both of them waltzed through the calm waves; Hermione tiptoed on top of the dust-like sand. The sound of the seagulls, the waves stretching to the edge of the rugged shore and the breeze _was_ the music to this untitled dance.

A love between a Pureblood and a Mudblood has its own complications, but the bond developed between the two individuals broke through and they thrived in the most passionate way possible. A promise meant more than it would seem.

* * *

**That's the end of this chapter! I hope you liked it although it was kinda short...I don't know when I'm going to be able to update next, but I won't stop this story until I finish (duh). Please review; your support helps me keep going!**


	18. When All Is Said And Done

**The reviews are almost to 100! I would've never thought they would all keep coming like this, so thank you all very, very much for your support! To let you all know, this chapter begins when the breaks' over and the students return to Hogwarts to continue their year. I hope you enjoy reading it! (Note – starts in 3rd person). And since the last chapter was far too short, I bring you a long one!

* * *

**

All the decorative banners and designs seemed to be nowhere within the reach of an eye; Hogwarts looked like it would on a normal day as the holidays were over. Students appeared to be more drowsy and out-of-it as ever, considering that most of the population wasn't too fond of returning to the waiting piles of homework.

Hermione threw her suitcase on her bed, relieved that she didn't have to carry it around anymore. Her aching arms seemed to lessen its weakness and she began to stand in front of a mirror, brushing her hair out evenly. She hummed to a melody of her own, taking a quick accelerated daydream in where she relived the ocean and its rewards.

And out of the corner of the mirror, emerged a perky Ginny with slightly wavier hair. She grinned and waved at Hermione's reflection. Hermione, startled, jumped a little and resumed the quiet combing of her hair.

"Hello, Ginny," Hermione greeted. "How was your winter break?"

Ginny, who was now sitting in Hermione's bed, tapped her foot dynamically as if her news would be the most fascinating anyone would ever hear.

"I received a lot of presents from Demelza," said Ginny brightly. "Other than that, I stayed home the whole break, and every now and then I changed my hairstyle. See?"

She held her hair, extending it as far as it can go; the bouncy fiery red locks dangling down to the shoulders of her robes.

"It looks great on you, Ginny! Suits you well," Hermione complimented. "Seems you had a fun time. By the way, where are Harry and Ron?" She asked, wondering where her best friends had gone to.

"They've finished unpacking and currently on their way to breakfast," Ginny replied, scooting over as Hermione sat beside her. "Now, don't wait for it, tell me about your winter break!"

"You mean…you didn't see those flyers?"

"What flyers?"

"Uh…never mind."

Hermione felt a small prickle of sweat slide down her neck as she grew a little nervous. Should she really tell Ginny what happened; everything involving Draco, or should she just tell a little lie to her? For now?

"It was very…_unusual _vacation," Hermione stalled. "But that's the only thing I might as well tell you."

Ginny, who was obviously not pleased, gaped at her and rested her head on her palm, tapping her fingers continuously.

"Why is that?" she asked in an undertone. "Too shy to tell me anything that happened?"

Hermione fiddled with her scarf, hoping to distract herself, but from the corner of her eye she could feel the burning excitement in Ginny as she stared at her. Hermione felt like she had no other choice.

"Okay, but…you have to promise not to tell anyone that happened,_ anyone_, even Harry and Ron," Hermione pleaded as she looked at Ginny directly in the eye. "Especially _Ron_."

Her mouth agape and in question, Ginny looked at Hermione dubiously and jerked her head to the side.

"If you say so…" she said quite gravely, trailing off and waiting for Hermione to tell her story.

Hermione adjusted her position so that she was comfortable, for she knew she was going to be talking quite a bit. She tried to boost her confidence by reminding herself that it in fact, it was _Ginny_ she was telling this; a close friend that she'd already spilled most of her secrets to.

"Where to start…where to start…" Hermione muttered.

"Anywhere," Ginny insisted; growing impatient.

"Just get this straight – it started out as a completely fine, a completely _normal_ Christmas Break. I myself had received presents. My parents though, had to leave the next day, so I had to spend the rest of the break with my grandmother, or so I thought…" she began.

"I…see?" Ginny expected something far more exciting and already began to grow bored. "Cut to the chase. Tell me everything, please?"

Not wanting to tell Ginny that she was indeed, acting quite nosy, Hermione continued her story; hesitating for a moment before doing so.

"…Anyway, the next day I helped my grandmother bake some holiday cookies. After doing so, I went off to my room, when Crookshanks started acting completely bizarre, hissing and everything. I ignored him and looked at the present I've been dying to open, but my grandma told me someone was at the door. After that Draco came into my room, and –"

"– _Malfoy_ went to your house?"

" – Well, I forgot that I was, in fact, expecting him, so I let him in. My grandmother had to leave to get some groceries, so Draco and I discussed things over baking more cookies – what are you grinning at?"

Ginny, remembering some of what seemed to be a poor excuse of etiquette, covered her mouth with one of her hands, chuckling.

"Are you telling me there's something _going on_ between you and Malfoy?"

Red patches blazed among Hermione's face as she tried to shuffle out of her bashful feeling, ignoring yet accepting Ginny's opinion.

"…_Please_, don't tell _anyone_, Ron will go mad!" Hermione pleaded.

Ginny let out a last, final laugh, hardly containing herself. Hermione tried to laugh with her kindly; which turned out to be far from graceful.

"I see. Please, go on ahead." Ginny finally calmed herself down.

"…As I was saying, while we were baking cookies, he told me that his father has been trying whatever it takes to get Draco to work for the Dark Lord. Even I assumed he would, but to my surprise, he refused. He said his father had already escaped out of Azkaban with the help of Death Eaters, resulting in a stronger watchful eye from the Order. His father told him to report anyone Draco would find suspicious of, so he –"

" – Did he mention Harry?" Asked Ginny, deadly worried.

"Unfortunately, yes, but –"

"Why that little…"

"Well, he was mentioned, but I do know now that I am in greater danger."

"…You're in danger?"

Hermione didn't reply, hoping to give Ginny an indistinct clue. Ginny seemed to catch the little flinch that emerged from Hermione, cleared her throat, and allowed her to continue.

"His father noticed on how he's been acting towards me and threatened to kidnap me if he wouldn't follow," Hermione took a quick pause, taking deep breaths due to her unimaginable pace. "After that, basically, the Death Eaters arrived at my house at night and Draco and I ran away, but split up in the process…when I next woke up I was in some dungeon of some sort of headquarters, Draco found me, and I was thrown into the forest until he saved me yet again. And…"

"What is it?" Ginny queried, leaning over to see the puzzled expression on Hermione's face.

"I still don't have my wand," Hermione remembered. "Lucius took it away from me…"

Hermione jolted up, sitting up straight, signaling – or _hoping_ – this was the end of the conversation. But she knew, of course, with people like Ginny, things didn't end as simple as that.

"…Oh…that explains how Ron was trying to call you and you wouldn't pick up," Ginny blurted out of nowhere.

"…He knows my phone number?" Hermione widened her eyes, baffled.

"I told him," Ginny reminded her. "But enough about all that drama, there's something I have to ask about you and…Malfoy."

Although she was scared to admit anything that happened between them to Ginny, Hermione was also pleased with herself from opening up her feelings to someone other than Draco.

"Go straight on ahead." Hermione smiled at her weakly, her teeth barely showing out of the corners of her mouth.

"Have you and Malfoy…actually _kissed_ yet?"

Hermione sunk back into her bed, lying down, looking up above. Ginny remained where she was, eager for Hermione to reply back. Hermione took a deep breath and spoke the truth, the words escaping her lips slowly.

"Yes," Hermione said in a muted tone. "We have."

Ginny squealed from the news in a bittersweet way and could hardly control herself. She arose from Hermione's bed and put on her shoes, opening the door, turning back to look at Hermione.

"Haha, thanks for the time. Come on, let's go to breakfast, Harry and Ron are waiting."

"Okay." Hermione stood up, left her suitcase on her bed to take care of later, and headed out the door.

_

* * *

Hermione

* * *

_

I knew it was coming – the moment I went down the stairs of the Girls' Dormitory, a bunch of Gryffindors crowded around me and Ginny.

"Hermione! Where have you been?" Partvati Patil asked.

"All the signs! You and _Draco Malfoy_? Hermione! What's going on? Tell me what happened!" A pompous Romilda Vane insisted as she shoved her way through the swarm of students.

Ginny grew infuriated rather quickly, took hold of one of my hands and miraculously managed to squeeze through the numerous Gryffindors. Once we were out in the seventh floor corridor, we received countless stares and whispering, but we ignored it.

Once arriving at the Great Hall, we walked down the long, narrow passageways and found our seats. I felt like all eyes were on the both of us as we finally made it to Harry and Ron.

"Hermione!" The both of them screeched at the same time, oddly enough.

Ginny went over to her seat and I scooted in inside mine. Belgian waffles were being served today, with a side of whipped cream and strawberries, and of course, the usual Pumpkin Juice. Feeling like I haven't eaten properly in ages, I took a bite which followed to another.

Even though I wasn't looking at them, I could tell the eyes of Harry and Ron were fixed straight at me, concerned on earlier happenings. I found the flapping of the 'Missing' sign in Ron's hand very distracting, so I finally looked up to speak to him.

"Why are you all looking at me like that?" I asked sarcastically.

Harry, who looked calm and sustained, contrasted to the fuming Ron. He jumped out of his seat and started moving his arms out hysterically, causing a few people to stare.

"HERMIONE! No one's telling me what's going on! Draco Malfoy…and Hermione Granger? What is this? You've been MISSING!" He roared.

I dropped my fork in surprise and cleared my throat several times to ensure my turn to speak to him.

"Listen, Ronald, I'm telling you that whatever happened over Christmas Break doesn't need to be told to the whole school. Or you for that matter, because I find it absolutely childish for you to fawn over such a thing when you see me in good condition!"

Harry furrowed his eyebrows, his mouth slightly wide open as he stared at Ron, the expression on his face seeming to say _What-are-you-going-to-say-to-that_? I could feel myself holding the temptation to laugh, which was successful.

"Listen, Hermione," now in a calm tone, Ron placed the sign on the table next to his plate. "You're not telling me…you were _kidnapped_ by Malfoy, were you?"

I grinned. "Maybe, maybe not."

Ron could hardly believe what I was saying. He muttered something which seemed to sound like '_What is she, happy about that_?'

Harry, who seemed to be so preoccupied about Draco last year, surprisingly let it slip through like anything else. Perhaps he let Ron do all the scowling, something that wasn't difficult to miss.

Ron didn't seem to have to say anything else to me, at least for now. I turned around when he wasn't looking to see if Draco was there.

No one. Pansy sat there, staring at the empty spot next to her gloomily. She caught my eye and gave me an awfully weak smile and returned to her conversation with Millicent Bulstrode.

Draco…where was he? I do remember him arriving on the train ride back, I saw set foot on the school grounds, but he was nowhere to be seen. I eyed the whole Slytherin table, hoping to see him hanging out with other Slytherins, but there was no sign of him.

I sighed, averting back to my breakfast. Harry was talking to Ginny; I assumed they were still going out. Ron, a melancholy expression smacked right on his face, drank countless cups of Pumpkin Juice.

I was halfway finished with my breakfast until there was a tap on my shoulder. Before turning around to see who it was, however, I looked at the expressions of Harry and Ron first. They looked slightly frightened and curious why some particular person was standing behind me.

"Draco, I-"

But I didn't turn to face a skinny, blonde boy. Instead I encountered the cautious eyes of Professor McGonagall, her face firm and emotionless.

"Miss Granger, come with me," she tapped my shoulder once more, and I stood up next to her. "There is something we need to discuss."

I took one final glance at Harry, Ron and Ginny before leaving the Great Hall with McGonagall. By now the excessive staring of the students toned down, and she led me to a fleet of unfamiliar stairs.

She stood in front of a black door with silver lining, pointed her wand towards it, and mumbled an incomprehensible incantation. The door swung forward quietly, and we walked straight into a pitch black room.

A spark cracked from McGonagall's wand, and upon doing so several lamps in the room were lit. Inside was a room as normal as any other one would be – wooden desk on top of a rug, a bookshelf in the corner, a luxurious chair, a fireplace, and some intricate curtains. Several armchairs across the bookshelf; two of them were facing me and the other two the opposite way.

"Now," McGonagall guided me to an armchair. "Sit down over there, please."

I walked slowly towards the one she directed me to place myself. Once taking my seat, there, across from me – was Draco.

"So, she brought you here too, didn't she?" Draco asked, quirking up a smirk.

I could barely keep myself still in my seat. McGonagall gestured me to stay seated, as she stood by the both of us, standing up straight, waiting for our undivided attention.

"Miss Granger, Mister Malfoy," she began, walking to her desk to pick up yet another copy of the '_Missing_' sign. "The Ministry and the Order have been very concerned about your disappearance."

Draco merely sat there, sulking back into the soft cushions and tapped his fingers on the armrests. I stared down at my feet, not knowing what to say.

"Miss Granger, would you mind telling me where the Death Eaters are currently residing?" McGonagall asked firmly.

I looked at Draco. I didn't know if I should tell her or not; would it be a good thing if Draco's father was sent to Azkaban once more? Would my decision to speak change everything; end everything involving the Dark Lord? Will Harry finally be able to succeed?

Draco reduced his eyes to slits and raised his eyebrows.

"I…I don't know," I murmured. "I've never been there before, and it doesn't look like it's within where we know."

This information did not seem to thrill McGonagall. Instead, she sighed in lack of sufficiency and opened a drawer from the wooden desk.

"I believe this is yours, Miss Granger?" She pulled out my wand; a dragon heartstring core.

I arose from the armchair, taking it from her. "Thank you, Professor."

McGonagall nodded her head to the smallest bit and clapped her hands together.

"Very well. I will discuss this with the staff. Off you go."

We proceeded out the door and down the fleet of stairs, and back into the familiar corridors where everyone headed towards their classes. Now that I was with Draco, more intense, unfriendly stares were given replaced by those suspicious curious ones before.

Draco shot malicious cold looks at the passing students, especially to the Gryffindors. On our way to Potions, we weren't uninterrupted too long. When we turned around the corner heading to the dungeons, Pansy leaned against the classroom door.

From the look we gave each other, Draco and I expected a complete breakout from Pansy, screeching among the dungeons for everyone to stare.

But that's not what we got.

Pansy finally noticed us standing there, snapped back into reality and just gave Draco a dim, crooked grin. She strutted off to some other place, probably trying to avoid us, and diminished in the darkness.

Entering the memorable room of musky, misty air and the wet smell of cauldrons wasn't new. Quickly transferring my eyes to my seat, I let out a frustrated groan to see Millicent Bulstrode grumbling.

Pansy finally reentered to room freakishly, and hesitated to take her seat next to Draco. She seemed to catch more attention from the class than she wanted to when she trembled to sit down by him. Draco looked at her casually and tried to show her an apologetic face, but failed in the process.

As for Harry, he seemed to be having a decent, civilized conversation with Luna. When I turned around to face Ron, he seemed to be staring at me and rapidly looked away, blushing furiously as he signaled Neville to start a play-along conversation.

The faint sound of the clock chimes were heard in the distance, and students fumbled through their bags to pull out their Potions books, afraid Professor Snape would take away House points for not being ready on time

But, several minutes later, Professor Snape _still_ hadn't arrived. Students began to look around the room, expecting him looming in the shadows. But there was no sign of him anywhere.

"D'you reckon he's out serving the _Dark Lord_?" I heard Harry say brutally to Luna.

Luna didn't respond; she twirled several strands of her wavy blonde hair with her index finger. Many other students didn't seem to have a care in the world that class had already started, either. Draco crossed his arms and laid back in his chair, while Pansy stared at him abruptly. Ron was recollecting a few minutes of sleep and Neville dazed at the ceiling, his mouth agape. Millicent constantly rolled her eyes in boredom and sat there, not taking a single look at me.

Another five, long devastating minutes passed by and I was convinced I might as well leave, until the door banged open.

Professor McGonagall stepped in; the uncertain looks permanent on the students' faces.

"It seems that Professor Snape can't make it today," she said matter-of-factly, as calm as ever. "I'm afraid he has…_other plans_. As for now, since I don't currently have a class, I have been asked to substitute. We will not be using our cauldrons today, please turn to page 326 in your textbooks and stop at 350, or until the class ends."

Students whimpered in agony as they flipped open to the demanded page in their textbooks. I didn't even bother, for even without opening the book I _knew_ it was review and that I didn't need to reread anything. But, nonetheless, it couldn't hurt, so I opened the cover and began turning the pages slowly but precisely.

When I reached page 320, something small and painless hit me on the head. It caught my attention, and I looked at the floor by my feet.

It was a crumpled piece of paper. A note. Looking to the front of the classroom towards McGonagall, she didn't seem to notice – she was merely sitting in Professor Snape's desk, writing on a piece of parchment.

I bent down, picking up the piece of paper. Millicent glared at it for a couple of seconds, but looked away quickly, minding her own business. I opened it slowly, trying not to make too many crinkling noises for anyone to notice. It read:

_Library, 9:00_

_See you there._

I reread it about four times to make sure that I was reading it correctly. Numerous pink patches slid across my face, sending a blissful feeling to arise in my heart.

Faking it, I pretended to clear my throat until I caught Draco's attention. He smirked to the point his white teeth were visible.

* * *

**Yep, I already have plans for the next chapter. Just wait for it though – it won't be too long! Although I have a lot of other things to do, I'll try to put this on the top of my list. Thanks for reading and please review! ) I'm hoping it'll get to 100+ reviews before I upload my next chapter. Much love!**


	19. Regardless Of What They Say

**Aieee! Thank you everyone for 100+ reviews! I'm so happy! (weep)**

**I know at the Author's Note at the end of the previous chapter I mentioned the wait wouldn't be too long, and yes, I did already had plans for this chapter, but it took me a while to get everything right while finishing schoolwork and everything else**. **Sorry for the wait, here's the next chapter, and I hope you enjoy reading it!(Starts in 3****rd**** person, then a narration from Draco later...he hasn't told the story in a while). Oh, and I looked everywhere for a decent image and description for Professor Sinistra, but didn't find one that was very accurate, so I just came up with one... (You'll see what I mean) And I was too lazy to look around for a description of the Astronomy classroom, so I just typed up a few stuff. Yep.

* * *

**

When the students were finally dismissed, Hermione stood by the door, awaiting Draco. Several Gryffindors glared at her pitifully, while the Slytherins sniggered their way through the dungeons. Pansy Parkinson even managed to flash a covetous grin at her as she scuttled past her, accompanied by Milicent Bulstrode.

Draco slid his way out the door as he laid his eyes on Hermione. Aside her, he leaned against the cold stone wall with his elbow, staring down, sleeves rolled up, his left leg crossing over his right.

"Do you have any time later?" he asked casually, flipping a bang out of his eyes.

Hermione clutched her book tightly in her hand, and although she was trying to hurry to go to Astronomy, she wanted to stay and have a long, decent conversation.

"Yes, I do," she replied, constantly ruffling imaginary dust off her skirt to keep her nervousness level low and herself occupied. "I've got some homework, but I will be able to meet up with you later."

He smirked with delight, the pleasure shining clearly among his pale face. Clicking his tongue several times, he started to walk his way out of the dungeons, Hermione following after him.

"Good. I'm glad." Draco made his way up the stairs with her, ignoring the numerous glances fellow Slytherins gave him as if they were saying _You-can't-be-serious-can-you_? Daphne Greengrass even stuck her tongue out at the sight of them together, swishing her hair in an overly sophisticated way. Shortly after Draco offered her a nasty look, causing her to flee with an awfully large group of Slytherin girls.

On their way to History of Magic, they ran into the last two people Hermione wanted to see at the current moment - her best friends, Harry and Ron.

The two groups stopped dead in their tracks as they all stood there in the middle of the Entrance Hall, both of them waiting for any movement.

Out of all four of them, Hermione was the only one with a normal expression on her face. The three young men glared at each other so fiercely it was hard to tell who started it in the first place.

"Hello Harry, Ronald-" Hermione began, her greeting not lasting as long as she thought it would.

"_Malfoy_," Ron remarked, sneering. "What brings_ you_ here?"

Draco chuckled viperously, raising his eyebrows in such a malicious act it left Hermione bewildered.

"_We_," he began, placing his hand around Hermione's shoulder, pulling her closer, emphasizing every bit of speech that left him. "were just on our way to class. That fact bother you much, Weasley?"

Harry nudged Ron, signaling him that there was no use to this. Ron, however, refused to listen to anything but himself at the moment.

"_Hermione_," Ron spat. "I don't know what's gotten into you, but I'm not about to relive the whole mess of our sixth year all over again."

Harry was appalled by Ron's remark, flashed a stern look at Draco and left Ron there to fight his own battles.

"Whatever do you mean by that, Ronald?" Hermione questioned, vocalizing a higher professional tone in her voice. "Do you mean that whole crisis between you and _Lav-Lav_?" she snapped.

Ron blushed, flurries of embarrassment bouncing here and there in his stomach. Draco couldn't help but laugh out loud, causing a few students passing by to stare. Hermione didn't ask for all of this negativity, but Ron had to be told to leave her alone once in a while somehow. She didn't seem to surpress any signs of laughter; only entertainment.

"_Half-wit dolt_," Ron mumbled to Draco, nudging him on the shoulder before stomping up the fleet of stairs behind them. Harry, who seemed to be awaiting him there, scoffed in guilt and appeared to ramble about how his temper needed serious control.

"That was...uncalled for," Hermione peeped after a couple of passing moments. She elbowed Draco softly to let him know that they would be late forAstronomyif they didn't hurry. He gladly accepted her gestures and the two of them sped up their pace, the tapping of their shoes against the hard ground increasing in sound.

Professor Sinistra stood outside the classroom door, her raised hand up in the air with her wand in it. At the tip of her wand floated slightly transparent figures of the Solar System; each and every one of the small planets revolving around the burning sun. She cackled happily with glee when they sped up, whirling through sparkles of infinitesimal stars.

"In you go, Miss Granger, Mister Malfoy," she demanded, slightly pushing them into the classroom. She flipped away some of the long blonde strands of hair that seemed to be seeping out of the tight bun she placed them in. After a few more fumbling students slipped through the door, she walked effortlessly to the back of the class and slammed it shut.

"My children," she crooned in a deep voice that was relative to that of Professor Trelawney. "As you all should know, there is an exam tomorrow covering every single constellation we have covered this year, which of _course_ will have a great impact on your current grades. I have set aside all plans for today's lesson and instead decided to provide you all with a study period."

All the students seemed to be in muted celebration as a few of them exchanged glances with their friends; probably hoping to study together, or through the eyes of the careless few; they saw this as a free period to goof off and relax, to do whatever they desired to.

Since this was one of the classes Hermione had without Harry and Ron, and Draco without the trouble of Pansy, they both claimed a back table to themselves as they sat down,piles of Hermione's notesstanding in front of them.

Theroom grew quite noisy rather quickly, and no matter how much Professor Sinistra tried to keep the noise level to apreferrable form,she wasn't heard. Giving up in exhaustion, she arose from her chair, screeching as she did so, and stomped up the stairs in the front of the classroom to her personal office, keeping the students to no supervision.

"What in Merlin's name is all _this_?" Draco asked, not too fond of seeing schoolwork waiting in front of him.

"It's my notes," Hermione informed. "You know, for the exam."

"Oh," Draco sighed, taking one last look at the accumulating sheets of parchment. "I see."

Shortly after skimming through her notes, Hermione noticed she was missing quitea few information. She arose from her seat, returned to her original desk to pick up her schoolbag, and sat down next to Draco again. Digging through even _more _scraps of notes and writings, she pulled out her quill and a bottle of ink. Hermione began to jot down more information about the stars and constellations on a fresh, unwritten piece of parchment.

Draco, with nothing else to do, laid back in his chair, his arms outstretched behind his neck. His eyes were nothing but slits as his gaze reverted from the next thing to the other, looking for some temporary entertainment to pass the time.

_

* * *

Draco

* * *

_I hope she knew why I was planning to meet with her later. Alone. But I didn't want to worry her with the information I had, for at the current moment she seemed to be dwelling within her own world of knowledge; as carefree as carefree goes. 

Not even bothering to prepare for a meaningless exam, I scooted back towards the desk until my chest was touching the edge of the wooden table. Leaning over towards her, I watched the swift, wispy handwriting of Hermione emerge from her head, to the tip of the quill, to the surface of the beige parchment.

It wasn't too long until she noticed I was watching her, causing her to jump in her seat slightly, almost piercing her parchment after dotting a_ j_. Chuckling admittingly the moment she saw my face approaching hers, she placed her quill down on the table to continue later.

"Draco," she began, seeming awfully concerned. "Why aren't you studying for the exam?"

First I looked at her dubiously thinking she was joking, but after looking directly into her eyes I realized she was dead serious about how my results would turn out.

"I'm not really the kind of person who's worried about my grades, if you haven't noticed for the past few years," I pointed out, the both of us laughing a little afterwards. "I think I'll let this one pass."

She shook her head and let out a little _tsk-tsk_.

"No, Draco. If you want me to meet you later at the library, let me at least help you with _some_ studying." She brought her chair closer to me, pulling out another new piece of parchment, her quill and ink bottle. "Write your name."

Deciding to followsuch a simple order, I picked up the quill and wrote in my snake-like handwriting at the top right hand corner: _Draco Malfoy_.

"Now what?" I asked, clueless of what she was leading me to.

"Okay, I'll ask you a question, and you can write down the answer. That okay with you?" She asked, grinning excitedly.

"If you say so..." I rested the piece of parchment on the hard surface of a book and faced her. "I'm ready."

Hermione pulled out a random sheet from her pile of notes and scanned her eyes through it, finding a question. "Question one - _what is the name of the constellation with the form of the whale_?"

My eyes popped open and I had no idea what the answer was. Tapping the end of the quill on the piece of paper, I thought over some of the words I remember Professor Sinistra speaking out loud last time. The first word that came up to me was the constellation _Volans,_ so I quickly wrote it down although its meaning remained unknown to me

"Next," I said, allowing Hermione to continue.

"Question two - this one is really easy. _What is the name of the constellation with the form of the dragon_?"

Already from the moment the word '_dragon_' escaped from her lips I scribbled down my own name, _Draco_.

Minutes later and at the end of Question Ten, Hermione asked if I could show her my paper to see how I have done. Sort of worried of what she would think, I handed it to her nervously, rocking back and forth in my chair. Her eyes widened several times, and I knew I didn't do a good job already.

"Okay, Draco...you managed to tell me that indeed, _Monoceros_ is the Unicorn, _Draco_ is the dragon, _Cancer_ is the crab, and _Aquila_ is the eagle. And as for the other six, you gave me _Volans_ for question one - which is the goldfish when I asked for the whale, _Cetus _- and I don't think you need to listen to my rambling about the others, so I'll just say it to you simply - study more."

Looking at her blankly, I was convinced that she wasn't disappointed nor pleased with my work. Frowning with displeasure, I took it back from her slowly, tapping my fingers on my knee and staring at the black '_X_' marks Hermione wrote simultaneously. Hermione returned to her own work, humming her own melody.

Not wanting to rankle Hermione, I pulled out a book from a drawer under the table and pulled out an Astronomy Book, lazily flipping through the pages, eyeing the numerous pictures of stars and mythology gloomily. The noise level in the roomwas far too extreme to concentrate on any simple thing.

In cue, Professor Sinistra shot open her door, her hands on her hips. Her red face fumed with impatience, her bright green beady eyes enlarged with rage.

"CLASS, please! Quiet down!" She bellowed before slamming her door shut and locking it with an overflow of rusty locks.

Like the students were _actually_ going to listen to her; Professor Sinistra should've already adapted to the sneaky tricks her class presented to her. They were silenthowever, for one brief moment, but when everyone was sure she was locked away in her room, the noise resumed itself again.

After a maddening period of Astronomy, it was lunchtime. The class walked out of the room sluggishly, knowing that they would have to descend several series of stairs to enter the Great Hall. Approaching my original seat, I threw my schoolbag over my shoulder and awaited for Hermione to exit out of the door. People looked at my oddly as I leaned against the side of the classroom door, peeking in every once in a while to see if Hermione was coming.

"Sorry about that, I had to find page 3 from my notes," Hermione apologized, now stuffing some final papers in her overfilled bag. Flipping a bundle of her classic bushy hair behind her ears, which of course wouldn't stay in that position for long, began to walk down the stairs and I followed.

"Oh, and Draco," she said when we were halfway there, stopping in the middle of the staircase. "I don't mean to spoil whateverwe plan to converse at the library, but is there something you wish to tell me?" Hermione asked anxiously.

Yes, it was true, I didn't want to spoil the conversation to her now...and the fact that her day was going by perfectly shattered me. If I told her now, she might nag to hear the rest, but perhaps if I told her something vague and anticipating, she'll wait...?

So I decided to do so.

"Hermione...haven't you wondered exactly _why_ McGonagall had your wand in the first place? How she was the one who found it?" I asked, hoping it wouldn't give her too much a hint.

She pondered for a moment, staring at her feet, blinking her eyes rapidly. Then the look at her face said it all; it finally came to her.

"Now that you say it, you're right...why did she find my wand? And whatever happened to the rest of the Death Eate-"

I quickly approached her and mimed her to be quiet, for some passing Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs seemed to be eavesdropping on the conversation. When Hermione gave them a hand motion as if shooing them away, her bottom lip quivered.

"Oh, sorry about that."

"That's fine," we carried on our journey to the Great Hall. "I'll tell you as much as I can later."

Once entering through the two large doors, I don't think I've ever felt more eager to eat in my entire life. I've skipped breakfast due to the short meeting with McGonagall earlier, and I've been keeping myself in my room once I arrived home from the entire crisis. Mother has been very troubled by recent happenings, especially when she got her hands on her own copy of the Missing signs. She isn't deadly serious about the limitations of our blood, in this case, me being with a Muggleborn. I could say she believed my life was at stake more than my conscience.

"I'll see you later, Draco," Hermione waved farewell. "I don't have any more classes with you, and I'll be in the Common Room during dinner to finish my homework so I'll see you at the library. And as for lunch, I'm going to just grab something from the table and study elsewhere.Okay?"

"Sure. Goodbye," I waved back,heading my way towards the Slytherin Table. Pansy, to my surprise, didn't seem to be fawning gloomily at her seat. Instead, all the way at the other end of the table, she seemed to be complaining about her own personal problems to a bored-looking Miles Bletchley, whocouldn't seem to care less.

Placing myself in my seat, I immediatelyhelped myselffor some salad and Pumpkin Juice, unaware that Theodore Nott was staring at me glumly.

"Hungry, aren't you," Theodore remarked, slowly going for some toast. "So tell me, what was that whole thing between you and that Filthy Mudblood Granger?"

"Hope you don't mind me saying this, but mind your own business, Theodore," I said daintily. "But whatever happened over Christmas Break - I plan to keep the whole detailed story within the both of us."

Theodore just raised his eyebrows in an understanding emotion and returned to his lunch, while on the other hand, an interesting Daphne Greengrass butted in. Might I mention that she has been crazy mad about me for ages now?

"Draco...you're not saying you're _going out_ with Granger, are you?" She asked, biting her nails.

"...Perhaps," I said; indifferent.

"Does that mean you've..."

"That I've what?"

Crabbe and Goyle, aside Theodore, both exhanged looks as they looked at me glumly but worriedly, as if I commited the worst crime in the world. Unaware what they were talking about, I just chewed my food constantly, waiting for an answer. Daphne shoved aside a smallish Slytherin girl, making room for herself, twirling her perky pigtails with her fingers.

"I'm asking...have you already..." she began, on the verge of leaping up.

"Oh Gods, Greengrass, how long do you plan to make me wait?"

Being called by her last name - especially from a boy she fancied - shot through her straight and quick like a knife. She tried to hide this with a weak smile, but I could see right through her. She cleared her throat and turned red a bit, flustered.

"Have you already...well..._done_ anything with Granger yet? If you know what I mea-"

"Drop it already, would you! What happens between the both of us _stays_ between the both of us, so the chances of you finding out anything is low," I snapped, nearly throwing my fork in the air. "So, don't keep your hopes high, Greengrass."

She was on the edge, as angry as she could ever be. A pout crawled among her pale face as she stomped away elsewhere. Theodore, Crabbe and Goyle just sat there, and shortly continued eating as if the whole outburst didn't happen. I grew full rather quickly, but Hermione was nowhere relatively near, so I remained in my seat until lunch ended.

I was desperate to go to the library. If I didn't tell her now, it might be too late - for her sake.

* * *

**Okay, whew. That wasn't the longest, but it wasn't the shortest ever, so I hope you're satisfied. I KNOW there's a lot of things you probably don't get in the chapter, but most of it (if not all) will be explained in the next chapter during their** **little time in the library (yes, they are going). Now about my next update - it's going to be a while until I next update. It's almost my 13th birthday - I don't know why that would be an excuse, but...yeah - and the end of the school year is approaching fast and finals are on their way.**

**Anyway, thank you all AGAIN for the wonderful reviews/support, I could have never gotten this far without any of you, so please, stay tuned and I hope you see you all soon!**


	20. Blood Was No Boundary

**A new chapter! Ah, can't you just smell that new, fresh chapter smell...ahem, sorry. Yeah, it took a really long time for the update; due to school finals (and due to my procrastination I already seemed to drop two letter grades in one of my classes)...at least it's almost the end of the school year!**

**Once again, thank you all for the supportive reviews. :) This chapter will be completely told in 1st person, starring none other but Hermione! The whole thing took me a while to finish and submit because the file kept disappearing, but here it is! I hope you like it. :) **

_

* * *

Hermione

* * *

_

"The library will be closing soon, I suggest you better hurry," Madam Pince nagged. She slammed a rather thick copy of _Quidditch Through The Ages _fiercely on the table I was currently working at, snarling. "Argus wouldn't be too happy if he catches students wandering about the castle at night!"

The thought of Filch and Madam Pince sickened me, and her persistent pecking was definitely getting to my last nerve. How was I supposed to speak to Draco when she was going to close the library? I grumbled in disgust, only loud enough for me to hear. My feathered quill kept going at it, refusing to stop writing, until a frail old hand picked it up.

"Leave, now," Madam Pince snapped. She refused to return my quill unless I would leave the library. I glared at her; herself doing her own sufficient share of it too, and I arose from my seat, the chair screeching as loud as possible. After pushing the chair back in, I threw all my books into my schoolbag.

"I'll take that back now, if you excuse me," I snarled, fiercely snatching away my quill from her weak wrinkled hand. She scoffed at me but I ignored and stomped my way out of the library, my head held high and my nose in the air to give her a definite image that I was not pleased. I liked quiet, undisturbed peace, and since she was the librarian, she should know I was one of her daily visitors...

The corridors were dark. I could hear water dripping from a nearby leaky ceiling, and there seemed to be no one else wandering around. Have I really stayed in the library for that long? Perhaps, I thought, there were still some dinner guests at the Great Hall. I made my way down several moving stairs and proceeded into the Entrance Hall.

But as I made my way there, I didn't seem to take in the familiar chattering and echoes of children's voices. It was dead silent; I couldn't even hear Filch's footsteps or the simultaneous meows of Mrs. Norris. Walking around the corner of the Great Hall, indeed the two large doors were open – but the Great Hall was completely unlit and deserted. There was not a student or teacher within my point of view; although it wouldn't hurt to check.

I walked inside, standing by myself in the long narrow passageway between the tables.

"Hello?" I called out, hearing my own voice bounce against the rough walls and arising to the bewitched ceiling, which now had taken form of an unfamiliar galaxy.

Making my way out of the Entrance Hall, I walked up even more aggravating stairs to the seventh floor corridor. Once there – all the torches seemed to have died out. I searched my robes for my wand, and pointed it dangerously into the nothingness.

"_Lumos_," I muttered under my breath. A white beam of light revealed only what was feet ahead of me, which was satisfying enough. I made my way to the portrait of the Fat Lady, thinking about where Draco was currently residing.

Clearing my throat beforehand to say the password, I only ran into an open portrait hole. On the other side, the Fat Lady was no where to be seen in her painting; probably hanging around other neighboring illustrations.

Still, it wasn't a good sign to see the portrait hole ajar. I pointed my illuminated wand towards the entrance, for even in the usual lit Gryffindor Common Room, there were no lights there. Walking in with only a bit of apprehension lurking somewhere inside me; my knee bumped into a hard corner of something.

Muttering in pain and clenching my knee, I pointed my wand weakly. I hit the edge of a desk with a very familiar orange lamp. It turned out to be the desk that I usually did my homework at. Standing up straight once more, in the corner of my eye, a cluster of warm colors danced.

The fireplace was still barely lit. Other than that, nothing could be seen if I didn't turn my wand towards its direction – the stairs to the dormitories, the couches, the exit; anything. I began to grow worried.

But what was this? Something gleaming shone through the windows; something bright and scattered with smoke-like strokes. Using my wand to guide me toward the window, I pulled the curtains wide open, allowing the furniture in the room to be completely visible now. I stuck my wand back into its pocket and squinted my eyes to look outside.

A giant glow of a green skull floated in the air, its serpent tongue crawling out of its mouth. It hung there in the sky above the school, blazing brightly. The Dark Mark…

I didn't know how to act first. Stumbling in my wake, running through the Common Room and up the stairs of the Girls Dormitory, I fell through the door, face first. My fall inflicted a sharp, persistent pain among my right cheek, and I groaned in the process of standing up.

"Hermione? What's wrong? Are you okay?"

I jerked my face straight up to face a half-asleep Ginny; still rubbing drowsiness from her eyes. Curlers were twirled within her hair, and striped peach pajamas were comprehensible.

"Ginny…I didn't mean to wake you up," I apologized, ruffling my skirt to ensure it wouldn't get too dusty. Other girls, such as Lavender Brown and Romilda Vane, seemed to arise from their sleep and yawned, staring at Ginny and I.

"Mmf…what's going _on_?" Lavender rolled around back and forth in her bed, stretching her feet out. "…Hermione? What's happening?"

Did I really wake up that many people from a single fall? Should I tell them that I saw the Dark Mark outside? I headed towards my bed, throwing my bag upon it, taking my wand out once again.

"Hermione, what are you doing? You're in a cold sweat!" Ginny leaped out of her bed, causing a flowery scent to fill the room, and walked towards me, analyzing me closely. "Is there something you want to tell me?"

I had to tell them eventually, they would find out – but I didn't want them to panic. It seemed that Ginny was the first one I should tell, for the look in her face said everything – she was worried and desperate to know.

"Ginny," I said to her quietly. "Look outside the window."

Ginny flashed me a dubious look, raising her eyebrows and tilting her head backwards. "Whatever you say…" escaped from her lips, and she pulled the curtains open. Girls jumped out of their beads and huddled together to look outside. For a couple of moments the girls crammed against one another, shoving and pulling away to get a better view. After that the expression on their faces did all the talking.

Parvati was the first to gasp and scream in horror.

After her shriek another series of unbearable screams started to take play, and if I wanted to be able to speak over them, I had to cover my ears and yell. This rate, if there were Death Eaters in the castle, we'd all be found.

"Girls! Girls!" I bellowed at the top of my lungs, clenching my wand fiercely. To my surprise, they all froze with their mouths open wide like a goldfish out of water. From where I stood, I could clearly see Lavender's shoulders trembling in such force.

"…What are we going to do? What about Harry? Does he –" Ginny began, trying to blink away some tears.

I walked towards her silently, for I was afraid any sudden movements would only frighten her more. As I stood closer, her face was now immediately glazed with tears. I pulled out a handkerchief and wiped most of them away.

"Ginny, be brave," I patted her on the shoulder lightly. One of the last things I wanted to see was one of my dearest friends trapped in sadness itself. "Harry's a strong boy. He'll do what he has to do."

She sniffled and I could feel everyone around us staring. Romilda vanished under her bedsheets; the energy still left in her used for shaking in fear. I stepped away from Ginny and headed towards the exit of the Girls Dormitory, before doing so, turned around a last time.

"…Do you still have those enchanted coins from our fifth year? For the D.A.?" I asked, a brand new idea sprouting from the edges of my mind. "I still have mine."

Ginny brushed through her hair with her fingers for a short moment as she walked around the room to find her schoolbag; which laid glumly under her bed. She snapped it open, throwing out random scraps of paper.

"…Yeah, its right here," Ginny replied. "Why do you ask?"

I stared at my feet for a moment – should I really tell Ginny what I planned to do right now? I didn't want to worry her, but as a Gryffindor, I had to stand up for what was right.

"Use it if you need help," I told her flatly, trying to offer her a poor excuse of a smile, which never seemed to appear. "I'll try to be there. Okay?"

Ginny flinched. "W-wait, where are you going? You can't go anywhere when there's _Death Eaters_ in the castle!" She demanded, pulling me back by the arm when she saw me making my way towards the door.

"Ginny, I _have_ to," I murmured, sighing softly afterwards. "I said I would meet someone and I'm desperate to know if they're all right…"

She placed her hands on her hips and stretched her neck forward. All the girls, by now, seemed to be wide awake, glancing looks with one another as they waited for the next word to be spoken.

"_Who_ exactly are you looking for?" Ginny emphasized. From the glare in her eyes I could tell she already knew the answer – she merely wanted me to say it myself. So I did.

"Draco. I was supposed to meet him earlier."

Whispers seemed to take over the crowd of girls that sat in their beds; some showing a look of disgust, worry, curiosity, or even a hint of envy. They didn't stop gossiping until Ginny let go of my arm and I closed the dormitory door shut.

Making my way out of the Common Room, I kept my breathing still and steady – I didn't want to be heard. I merely tiptoed across the darkness, trying not to create a single sound. My hand grew sweaty and I gripped my wand tightly, pointing it in front of me just in case danger came.

The castle was still pitch black and there was not a sound. I must have been far from the Common Room by now, and my foot groped against the even ground to make sure I was still stepping on the rugs of the seventh floor corridor.

I leaned forward a little bit too much and discovered my foot not reaching a surface. I plunged down on what seemed to be the enchanted stairways –_ painfully_ – I rolled sideways until I crashed against a rough wall. Numerous sharp, stinging pains grew all over my body as I laid there, trying my best effort to get up.

I was sure I made a lot of noise during my fall – with the clattering of my shoes, the ruffling of my robes and my yelps of pain – someone must have heard me. But as I lingered where I was, there was no sign of any other movement within the area. I was safe – for the time being.

Continuing my way through the advanced darkness, and through the fact I took my time – maybe too _much_ time – I managed to pass the enchanted stairs, moving in their midst, and stood in some corridor that could've been any.

Although it would definitely help me greatly, I didn't want to cast _Lumos_, for I never knew if there was a Death Eater nearby, waiting to snatch my life away. I leaned against the wall, my hands stretching out as far as possible, trying to get an understandable image of where I was.

Searching for another path to take, I prolonged my process of movement until I reached a corner. Slowly stepping away from the wall and into the center of darkness itself, I squinted my eyes so they would adjust to the dark easier.

And there it was – a door, slightly ajar, with only the faintest moonlight shining through its windows – the library. My destination. Running rapidly but cautiously to the door, my heart raced and beated in my ears as the thought of Draco waiting in there helped me stay hopeful.

Once reaching inside, the clouds in the sky seemed to have fled and allowed the moon to shine even greater. I could see almost everything in the library now. Closing the door shut quietly, I started walking through the bookshelves, looking for a familiar blonde.

But I couldn't find him – each and every one of the shelves I squeezed through – there was nothing in between except a few dropped books. He wasn't under the tables, behind the curtains, in a chair – anywhere. Beginning to lose hope I started to rush around, panicking silently. My shoulder ran into the edge of the shelf and a large group of books clattered down to the wooden floor. I didn't care how much noise it made – I wouldn't be safe unless I was with Draco…

Out of nowhere, I heard someone hissing in between their teeth.

"_Psst_," they called.

My head averted speedily to look around for where the noise was coming from. Nothing. Just the same old bookshelves I've known for many years now.

"_Psst_," they called again. "_Hermione_…"

I grew even _more_ curious from the fact my name was called – and followed the voice warily to the point I stopped at another closed door – the door of the restricted section.

I waited for another call; unaware if I should look through there or not. I just poked my fingers through the countless holes in the chain-like took, resting my head on it effortlessly, on the verge of breaking into tears of stress.

And then, right there in front of me, it happened like some sort of long-lost miracle.

A boy, about my age with pale skin and blonde hair – peeked out of one of the shelves. The hope found its way back to me again and I felt a rejuvenating rising of spirits as I tried to jerk the door open.

"Draco!" I called, not too loudly. I was smiling behind the shocked face, I was more than happy to know he was all right.

He ran towards the door and opened it with ease. Once stepping inside, he pulled me into a heart-sinking hug. I would've thought he would be in great condition, but he wasn't – in our embrace, I could feel him trembling, and the slight sound of whimpering wasn't too hard to perceive.

I stepped out of the hug, still allowing him to keep his arms around my body. I looked at him directly in the eyes – slate met chocolate. He too, just like me, seemed to be in a cold sweat. I burrowed myself safely into his arms and against his shirt like a refuge and took a whiff of his ocean perfume. It captivated me with many memories, whether good or bad.

It was only moments later when he pulled me away from him by himself, his hands steadily placed on my shoulders and his head leaning down to speak to me properly.

"Hermione. What happened out there?" he asked, his voice cracking and full of quaver.

"On my way back to the Common Room, all the lights were out and…" I waited for another thought to tell and it came to me. "…Draco! Draco, there's…the Dark Mark; there's Death Eaters in the –"

Draco placed his index finger on top of my lips, hushing me and keeping sustained listening in my system.

"I know." He began to walk elsewhere, holding my hand and taking me along with him. He placed me to sit on a desk, while he stood up so that the level of our eyes was almost equal. "Hermione, listen."

I nodded him so he would know I would be focusing on him and nothing else in the world.

"Have you ever wondered why Snape has returned? Along with me?" he asked as a first.

"No, I can't say I have…why?"

"This is Potter's last year, Hermione. Snape returned with the Death Eaters to finish him off once and for all, here, now. I came thinking I would too, but as you know, I've stopped."

A shiver of fear went up my spine as I bit my lip in worry. He stroked some hair dangling in front of my face away, placing it behind my ear.

"And the whole story after we returned home from that place during Christmas Break…"

He told me how he arrived home, his mother hugging him so extravagantly for his arrival, tears running down heir pale cheeks. He said how his father was suspiciously not around; how his mother broke down into tears again when she showed her son the missing signs. He told me how out of nowhere, he asked his mother if there was a limit to who he loved, and how his mother merely smiled, assuming it was the girl from the missing sign. He told me how she said no one had power over who loved who; how blood didn't act as a boundary to her anymore and it only mattered that he was safe – it was only his Father who was overly cautious. He told me how his mother allowed him to stay with me. He told me everything there was to tell.

"So there's something else you must understand," he crooned as he sat next to me, his fingers encircling my knee. "You might be in great danger if you stay with me. I'm not as safe as you think I am."

What was he saying? I would never leave him for purposes of my life at risk! We've already been through a lot of hard times, and we succeeded.

"No, Draco," I rested my head on his shoulder as he placed his palm around my waist, pulling me closer. "I won't leave you. You can be sure of that."

He smiled, swaying his feet back and forth. He pulled out the brooch I gave him out of his pockets and handed it over to me.

"You'll need it," he murmured as he placed it on my lap. "Trust me."

Accepting it and not wanting to trouble him, I took it and placed it in my pocket. After that I stayed in my position, resting comfortably against his body.

"I love you, Hermione." Draco whispered in my ear, his breath tickling my neck.

I started to laugh from the sensation it sent. "Not as much as I love you."

If there was something I would never forget, it would be our little bickering fights about who loves who more. The thought of it seemed to enlighten me in every possible way, adding on to the fascination I was feeling now.

We started kissing after that. I wanted to spend my last few minutes with the one and only Draco Malfoy before crisis struck again, for I knew it was coming. I don't know how long it lasted, for I was far too enchanted to pay attention. We let go occasionally to take a breath, but I don't think I could ever stop staring into those lonely gray eyes of his.

To stop it all, there was a loud bang on the door as it blasted open. A huge cluster of voices and shuffling feet began to make its way into the library.

We stopped and I looked at him, his face forlorn but still meaningful.

"Hermione." he mumbled. "Are you ready?"

It took me a while to respond, for my heart did beat with worry, but if Draco was going to be with me, this was it – I replied.

"I'm with you."

**

* * *

The end for this chapter! Again, I am very sorry it took me a long time to update. I don't know when I will next update; I might even write a couple of one-shots to get me back on the roll, but I guess you'll just have to keep checking back. Thank you very much for all your support and I hope to see you soon! Please review :)**


	21. Stealing Her Attention

**Only a few more days of school left for me, woo! I'll probably be able to update faster in the summer, who knows. Yeah, I apologize for the lack of updates lately, I've been getting too preoccupied with school stuff and other things - it wasn't as easy as it was before.**

**Anyway, here's a new chapter for all of you! Before it starts, though, I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed this story and my Dm/Hg oneshot entitled '****_She_****', it really means a lot! And SamandRon7, I tried looking over a couple of things so it wouldn't be too confusing for you. :) Hope you'll understand a little bit better, and please enjoy the chapter everyone! This has some...fluff in it? I don't know.**

_

* * *

Draco

* * *

_

"Do you promise to stick with me? And not leave my side?" I asked her.

She nodded, clenching her fists together.

I cupped her face with my hands, to ensure that she was paying attentive and undivided attention to me. The moment my hands touched her delicately-colored skin, she flinched a little. Was she frightened we wouldn't make it in time?

"_No_, Hermione. I need to hear it from you, so I'm sure. Do you promise to stick with me, no matter what happens? Speak," I repeated, trying to entice the answer out of her by bringing her face closer to my own.

She leaned her head by my ear, removed my hands from her face and pulled me into another one of her highly affective embraces, but I could feel slight vibration from her laughing, which was definitely uncalled for.

"Yes, Draco. I promise."

"Good," I enclosed her in my arms once more before taking her hand and running out the other exit of the Restricted Section, being as quiet as possible.

Hermione hid behind a bookshelf and peered through the small slits in-between the chained books. I remained where I was, waiting for a response from her; leaning against the bookshelf opposite of her, arms crossed.

"What do you see?" I whispered, across from her.

She shrugged, tiptoe-ing to get a better look. Her head turned slowly from left to right, trying to get a widened point of view of the area. "That's funny, I heard some voices, I just don't hear anything. Draco, do you -"

"_STUPEFY!_"

A blinding flash of light caused me to place my hand over one of my eyes, squinting. Hermione's hands concealed her face, she yelped in pain slightly, and she began to stumble backwards. I got to my feet quickly and caught her in time.

"_There they are!_" A raspy voice shouted from the other side of the bookshelf.

Before making my next move, my eyes fell upon Hermione, who still lodged in my arms. Her eyes began to open as she flinched, shuffling in my support. Holding her tightly, I quickly ran the opposite direction of where the voices we coming from. Although her weight slowed me down, I was sure I could make it out of the library without getting caught.

"Wake up!" I screamed, still running as fast as my legs could take me. "Open your eyes!"

On command, Hermione's chocolate brown eyes shot open; her body jolted up as she clung to my shoulders. She stepped out of my arms, running with my fingers entwined with hers. "They're...they're here!" She bellowed.

Our feet moved simultaneously as we turned around through corners of books and more books; finally finding the other exit. Several sets of footsteps were comprehensible, meaning that the group of Death Eaters were hot on our trail.

The door stopped us. Hermione stuck her fingers in between the holes of the chain-like door, rattling it fiercely, stress clearly composed all over her red face. She bowed her head down, shaking the door ferociously, and nothing happened except the sounds of the chains clinked altogether.

"It won't open!" Hermione kicked the door numerous times, straining with frustration until she finally ran to me to give up. "Draco...what...what are we going to do?" She muffled, thin tears streaming down on my shirt.

I took a quick glance behind us. The Death Eaters were not within my range of view, but their voices and footsteps were louder than I had expected. Acting quickly, I signaled Hermione to wrap her arms around my neck and hold on tightly, for I began to climb the chain-like fence.

"Stay put," I mumbled. "Don't be afraid."

I felt her head nudge as Hermione nodded; hiding her face against my chest as I heard muted sniffles. Beginning my way up, my fingers wrapped around the thin metal coils and I could feel my skin redden as they dug into it gradually. Wincing quietly but determined to continue, I resumed the process no matter how difficult it was with Hermione hanging on.

But there, like an instant without warning - a jet of green light hit the metal coils, only about an inch away from my face. Hermione screamed.

I rotated so that only my head was facing the opposite way. The Death Eaters were now bunched up in the middle row of the bookshelves, cramming and pushing to make their way through. Most of them shot brightly colored jets of light out of their wands, missing from all the commotion of movement. Out of all the streams of multicolored light, one Death Eater shot multiple curses of the _Avada Kedavra _as I dodged them, leaning over one side or the other.

Hermione wailed and clenched onto me even tighter. My arm stretched out and grabbed the very top of the fence, and with all my strength, I pulled the both of us up. Hermione even managed to act on her own and let go from me, landing perfectly on her feet on the other side.

"Go, Hermione," I spoke, breathing hard from exhaustion. "Go. Run!"

She looked at me dumbfounded and shook her head, and although she was stuck in the middle of a Life or Death situation, she remained there like it was any ordinary day.

"No, Draco," she spoke flatly. "You told me to promise; I did. And I don't plan to break it, either."

I looked at her with an expression of doubt. If Hermione didn't flee now, her life would terribly be at stake. But I knew how Hermione was with our promises, so I jerked my head to side, gesturing that I was fine with her.

Hurrying up, I scrambled to get my body over the top and onto the other side of the fence. I pulled my wand out and pointed it threateningly in front of the Death Eaters.

A high-pitched, snarling voice of a woman spoke up from behind one of the Death Eater masks.

"Going to kill us, now are you, boy?" she scoffed, cackling with glee afterwards.

On the verge of casting _Crucio_ or_ Avada Kedavra _towards the woman, my eyebrows furrowed and I glared at her masked face angrily. But Hermione was here, and I don't think she would be too fond seeing me cast an unforgivable curse here, for she had to see it all happen.

So instead, I turned my wand's direction towards her and aimed a hex there, it being successful. Her body was sprung backward into a further point of the Restricted Section as she screeched with disbelief.

My body toppled foward and onto the other side of the fence. Hermione quickly grabbed my hand and we made a run for it; out of the library through the broken door. "Come on!" She insisted, tugging my sleeve and running faster, ahead of me.

In the corridors, a few students (still wearing their pajamas), wandered around with gasp and fear as they saw the unlikely couple nearly out of breath, trying to keep a pace. Potter, Weasley and his filthy sister were among the front of a crowd of Gryffindors.

I continued running the opposite direction, for that was the way outside, but Hermione pulled me towards the way she was going; to the Gryffindor students. Sighing in disgust, I dealt with it and ran with her, the look on Weasley's face raging with more anger the closer I came.

"_Malfoy_," Weasley spat. "What are _you_ doing-"

"Ronald, not now!" Hermione demanded, immediately turning away from Weasley's fuming face and instead facing Potter. "Harry, the school's not safe, especially you. There's _Death Eaters _in the-"

"I know," Potter cut in. He was worried and the Weasley girl nudged him in the shoulder, flashing a quick glare at me, thinking I was stupid enough not to see her. "They barged in the Common Room earlier, Ron, Ginny and I managed to talk all the Gryffindors out into leaving."

"...Harry, are you okay?" she asked, worried.

"I'm fine, Hermione," he replied, trying to offer her a weak smile. "I've got Ron and Ginny. I'll be alright, so don't worry."

The whole time Hermione and Potter conversed, he ignored me like I wasn't even there in the first place. Throughout their whole discussion, Weasley and _Weaselette_ grumbled and muttered things under their breath to themselves, constantly shifting their arms from crossed to on their hips.

"We all better hurry," the Weasley girl babbled demandingly. "I think the Death Eaters are somewhere nearby-"

Suddenly, a cluster of high-pitched shrieks came from a fleet of stairs as there girls stumbled their way to the group of Gryffindors. Even from far away, I could recognize that familiar ear-shrilling scream anywhere.

Pansy, in her rosy - obviously frilly - pink pajamas, leaned against a stone pillar and tried to catch her breath. She was accompanied with Daphne Greengrass, who had her curlers on, and Millicent Bulstrode, who looked more exhausted than ever.

"You five," Pansy gasped in between her deep breaths, leaving me out of the count. "_What _is happening around here?"

"First a mysterious hooded man burst his way into the Slytherin Common Room and next we hear screams from you _Gryffindors_ -" Daphne sneered at the pajama-covered crowd of students behind us - "and I intend to find out why!" She stepped in front of Hermione, placing her hands on her hips meaningfully and stretched her neck foward, snarling at her with her cat-like eyes.

Hermione crossed her arms and gave Daphne her own fair share of dirty looks back. But just as Daphne attempted to step foward even more and perhaps start a fight with her, I stepped foward.

"What do you think _you're_ doing, Greengrass?" I asked sharply.

Daphne stepped backward, her face flushing red, and from the corner of my eye I could see Pansy's eyes widen greatly. Millicent just stood aside from her, rolling her eyes with boredom as she twirled her finger around her dark frizzy hair.

"N-nothing," Daphne stepped back to accompany Pansy and moved in a flurry. Pansy gave me an apologetic look and slowly walked over to the opposite side of the Gryffindor crowd, looking down as she did so. A couple of Gryffindors moved aside so they wouldn't have to deal with the three girls demanding their own space.

Hermione pulled my sleeve and then looked up at me with a satisfied mask on her face. Weasley turned his head sideways, pretending he didn't notice a thing. The Weasley girl rested her head on Potter's shoulder and let out multiple deep sighs of fatigue, shifting her weight from one foot to another.

"Let's go," Hermione led me away from the crowd of Gryffindors, waving to Potter and them before the sight of the crowd disappeared as we reached a corner.

The castle was dark and the corridors had an eerie silence persistently attached to it. We had to find our way out of the school in order to reach somewhere safer.

"It's too dark," I rubbed my eyes, trying to adjust my eyes to the dark. "Do you want me to cast _Lumos_ or something so you can see?"

"It would be better if you didn't," she recommended, laughing a little. "They might catch us that way."

"Oh. Okay, fine with me."

The silence continued as we reached the Entrance Hall, where an unusual emptiness stood. I was so used to the area being packed with students, so it felt rather odd. Hermione kept close, her head leaning against my elbow and she occasionally dug her fingers into my own for I felt like I was considered as a safe refuge around her.

"Say, Draco?" Hermione spoke quietly, taking her shining wand out; examining. "How did McGonagall get my wand? I thought your...your father took it."

"He_ did_," I looked out to the distance before turning back to her. "Didn't I tell you what happened to my father, by the way?"

"...No," Hermione said hesitatingly. I know she didn't want to trouble me with the facts about my father's condition, but if she was the one the story was being told to, it was completely fine with me.

"Well, you know how I told you my father wasn't home when I arrived? And how my mother was the only one there?"

She nodded hurriedly, wanting to hear more.

"I guess it seems he's been put into Azkaban again," I spoke in an undertone, feeling some pity and guilt. "As from what we saw tonight, they've probably escaped again. There's a high chance my father's in this very castle right now."

"...I'm sorry about your father," Hermione stroked my arm and looked at me with dark eyes that almost seemed nocturnal. "...Really."

"No need to be so sympathetic," I turned my gaze from her and chuckled slightly.

"But how did McGonagall get involved?"

We reached the hallway by the courtyard and I guided her out the open window, and the feeling of the soft Earth relieved the feeling of our tired feet.

"Let's stay here for a while," I insisted before returning to my story.

"About a day before returning back to Hogwarts she rang our doorbell," I resumed. "She acquired the wand the same day my father and the other Death Eaters were arrested. Although she offered to give it to my mother and let me give it to you during school, my mother refused since she didn't want me being too involved with anything anymore. Mother's been pretty worried nowadays."

Hermione raised an eyebrow with curious thought. She took a couple of steps foward and unexpectedly plopped her body onto the cool night ground. I didn't know why she was doing this, but I joined her - after all, Hermione was an unexpected, mysterious girl, another thing I liked about her.

"Your mother's really different from your father," she said, running her fingers through the smooth blades of grass. "Almost kind of like me."

"My mother's like you?" I questioned, bewildered. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I don't know," she dropped down to the ground so that she looked up into the countless stars above us, covered in a blanket of the night sky. "We're both very concerned about you."

Joining her, I stretched my arms back and rested on my back as well, my head aside her own. "Really, eh? What's there to be constantly worried about?"

"You're not exactly staying in one place all the time, Draco," she giggled and as with most things, I followed. "You take risks most of the time and I just can't help but think about you. But then again, that just leads to me taking your path; as in following you, right? It's almost always been like that."

Unsure of what to say, I didn't talk, but she knew I had been listening to her and nothing else. Not even the crickets chirping elsewhere or the wind. Never in my life did I think I've had enough time completely to myself; such as lying down under the night sky with a choice person.

Although after that captivating statement - '_I just can't help but think about you_' - the entire atmosphere kept its stillness. Even so, I wanted to steal her attention like fireworks, for I was sure that I'd even _cheat destiny_ to be with Hermione.

"Oh, look!" Hermione said excitedly, pointing her index finger up to the sky as she traced a white light streaming across the star-speckled sky. "A shooting star!"

I rolled over so that my head was resting on my hand, my elbow on the ground. "You going to make a wish?"

But of course, I didn't need her to answer me back. She closed her eyes, the smile still on her face, and it was only a few moments later that her eyes burst open and the look of happiness was painted on her face even more stronger this time.

She scooted over closer to me and once more, hid her head within the shelter of my arms.

"What did you wish for?"

Hermione brought her head up again so that her forehead came in contact with my chin, but I could still clearly perceive the glint in her eye.

"It's not going to come true if I tell you, silly."

**

* * *

Okay, there you go! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Once again, I have no absolute clue when I'm going to update next - just please keep checking back, and if you haven't please review my oneshot, please? And another note - I have no clue how I plan this story to be. I have some events that are to happen in the future already jotted down somewhere, but I originally thought the story would finish somewhere around 15 chapters. But I guess longer is better, right (well, in some cases)? Anyway, thank you all very, very much for all your kind comments and reviews, they really do mean a lot. And of course, you know what every user wants after a chapter :) Until then!**


	22. A Tricky Deception

**It's nearing the end of the school and I bring you another update (before you guys have to wait torturously again). This chapter is pretty short to ensure the cliffy at the end (well…kinda), but thanks for coming over here and reading it this far. :) Hope you like it – the whole chapter is told in 3rd person.

* * *

**

Hermione and Draco rushed up when they heard the sudden familiar noise of silence-breaking footsteps and without need to stop and think; they ran out of the courtyard and back towards the corridors leading to the giant entrance doors. The two of them ran blindly against the masking darkness, unaware if any objects stood in front of them or not.

"One of them, one of them _said_ –" Draco spoke in between uneven breathing, still running as the soles of his feet began to fall into immense heat. " – My name…!"

"Your Father is here," Hermione panted, keeping a steady pace so that she was neck-to-neck with Draco. "Whatever could he be after?" One of her legs began to throb with tiredness, and she tried her hardest not to limp over to the unwelcoming floor.

Another series of unexpected jets of light from a wide range of colors were fired at them aimlessly, causing Hermione jumping to her feet and sprinting faster at the exact moment they were fired.

"Hurry!" With one hand, Draco held Hermione's, keeping her distance close. With the other, he only barely turned around to aim a couple of hexes at the Death Eaters' feet – they were in range of eyesight and were catching up.

The boy managed to trip three Death Eaters, a little light of pride still burning deep within him.

"You're not going to get away with this, Draco! Not after letting down your whole family from falling into that little _Mudblood's_ love spell," a choice Death Eater shouted. "You can make sure of that!"

Draco ignored the offending scolds from his coldhearted father and continued to aim hexes at the storming feet of the black cloaked figures; missing at every try.

Not too long afterwards his small victory, he felt Hermione pull his opposite sleeve greatly multiple times, signaling him to turn around.

Hermione shook her head absentmindedly with dissatisfaction as she pressed her fingers and slammed her first on the firmly closed Entrance Doors. Draco did his own fair share of banging against the pain inflicting hard doors, panicking.

"They're closed…we can't get out!" Hermione stepped a few steps back from the door, her head reaching up to see the sky stretching ceiling.

"This way…come on!" Draco pulled her and they both began to resume their rapid running through a corridor entrance to the left. The Death Eaters didn't seem to grow fatigue at all.

_At this rate_, Draco thought with all the lunacy rushing through his mind, _if we don't hurry, they might…_

"_STOP!"_

From behind the Death Eaters, a male voice called out, stupefying a Death Eater in the process. He made his way around the Death Eaters, his wand emerging countless bursts of white light until he finally reached Hermione and Draco, who continued to run. The Death Eaters fell to the floor, and it was only a couple of seconds later they arose again.

"What are _you_ doing here, Potter?" Draco hissed coldly, not too happy that Harry thought it would be okay to join them while they were in the middle of a dangerous crisis.

"I don't need any of your wise talk, _Malfoy_," Harry shot back, flashing a dirty stare at him before facing forward again. "I'm just here for the help."

"Ha, who needs help from _you_ –?" Draco began.

"The both of you! Stop it!" Hermione screeched after the three of them took a turn to the enchanted stairways. The three of them came to a halt in front of an unfamiliar, dusty, cobweb- strewn door.

"In here," she said, pushing it open quickly and letting the two boys in before slamming it shut. She locked it firmly and they stood in the middle of darkness; even more immense than any they've ever experienced.

Harry, infuriated by the fact that Draco was with him but willing to help, slipped his wand out of his jean pockets.

"_Lumos_."

A sufficient amount of light filled the room, revealing two old bookshelves, about eleven wrecked desks, and a numerous amount of secondhand piles of paper scattered all among the floor.

"This is probably a discarded classroom," Hermione whispered. "Draco, do you know where we are?"

"…No," he replied slowly after shooting Harry a quick glare; crossing his arms and leaning against the wall in the progression.

Hermione hurried over to where Draco was to hold his hand, and with Harry, guided him around the deserted classroom. Several times and Hermione's knowledge unaware of it; behind her back Draco and Harry furrowed their eyebrows at each other and narrowed their eyes.

"…I don't know how you can work with him, Hermione," Harry muttered out of the blue. "Honestly."

Her mane of bushy brown hair swished around quickly, some of it flying across Draco's sweater.

"Harry, please, not now. We have to find another way out."

"You want to say that again, Potter?" Draco stepped forward toughly, his hand ready to reach into his pocket for his wand.

"Draco! T-the _both_ of you, just STOP it!" Hermione stomped in between the two storming boys and nudged them both; the three of them continuing to walk around the room. But no matter where they looked, there didn't seem to be a door or an exit other than the one they walked into earlier.

"Harry," Hermione spoke out once she felt like giving up. "Where are Ron and Ginny?"

Harry's hands dug into his pockets and he looked at Hermione casually, trying to tell her not to worry.

"They're fine," he chuckled, even though it was difficult to stay happy at a time like this, especially the fact that he was stuck with a rival. "Not too long after you – and _him_ – left, the Death Eaters arrived at the scene and since I didn't want Ginny to be in too much danger, she left with Ron. I'm sure they're all right, Ginny seems to know enough spells and countercurses to keep them safe, especially that impressive Bat-Bogey hex of hers…"

Hermione giggled a little but also rolled her eyes with displeasure. If they didn't find another way out now, the Death Eaters would find them soon, and now Harry's _life_ was put to even greater risk.

"Face it," Draco murmured guiltily at Hermione. "There's no other way out. There is only one door that leads here."

Just when Hermione was going to open the door to find another place to hide in, a gathering of noises took play just outside of it. She placed her ear against the old wooden door, leaning against it to hear what was on the other side.

"What do you hear?" Harry asked, his voice a little too high in volume.

"Ssh!" Draco whispered as he joined Hermione, standing aside her. From where he was, he could clearly see that Hermione's shoulders were trembling – Draco encircled one of them with his fingers, trying to keep her calm.

The sound of shuffling feet was not too many feet away from the other side of the door, but there were still no voices hiding amongst them. Harry waited for any response away from the door, crossing his arms and tapping his foot silently during so. He pulled his wand out, just in case.

Hermione stepped away from the door and Draco did as well. She tried her other ear this time – but no speaking was heard again. After doing so she bent over to see if any shadows loomed over the door, but nothing was to be seen. The girl was completely sure that there indeed were Death Eaters waiting for them outside, but how come there was no sign of them?

"Draco," she mumbled, facing him and Harry. "There's –"

With an enormous blast the door sprung forward, coming in straight contact with the unlikely trio, hitting Hermione, Draco and Harry on the shoulders and pushing them to a complete fall. Pieces of wood separated from the door were clattered all over the floor, and some gathered in Hermione's bushy mane of brown hair.

"There," a scratchy voice of a Death Eater said. "The Mudblood, the 'Chosen One' and your son…pathetic!"

A tall, masked Death Eater approached the weak Hermione and pulled her up by grabbing her hair, Hermione yelping with response. Draco and Harry both shot up, glaring at the masked man.

"Let go of her!" Draco demanded, standing up and stomping his feet on the ground. His eyes widened greatly and he pointed his wand at the stranger; his hand trembling with fear of the future.

"Lower your wand or she dies," a familiar voice from the back of the large group spoke out.

A tall, pale man emerged from the crowd of Death Eaters, his mask in one hand and his wand in the other. He had the same pointed chin, mysterious gray eyes and platinum blonde hair like Draco, and a devious smirk was refusing to let go.

"Father," Draco panted. "Why-"

"Quiet, Draco," Lucius spat, and with a flick of a wand a spark of light hit Draco's wand and caused it to fly away all the way to the other side of the dark room, away from anyone's reach.

Harry stood there in a cold sweat, his glasses foggy and his hands smudged with brown dust. His cheeks grew into a deep, exhausting red as he glared at Draco's father with a passionate fury.

"Why, hello, Harry," Lucius said jokingly. "What brings you here?"

"Let Hermione go," Harry snarled as he felt a slight prickle tracing from his scar.

"Do you really think I would do that, after all the work my comrades and I have been through to find you three?" He said sarcastically.

Harry didn't answer; his anger and hatred only growing more immense.

"…Why?" Draco spoke faintly, hardly keeping his posture straight. "What gave you the _urge_ to do something like this?"

"Urge?" Lucius said in a strained whisper. "This was no urge of mine, Draco. This merely for your own good."

Draco couldn't stand this. He was angered, _disgusted_ by his fathers' actions and a raging fire that burnt inside him was ready to soar out like a phoenix, and he was unaware what he would do if he was messed around with any longer. The father he used to know, used to _understand_ was trailing about an inch away to unreachable now as he loathed the fact he was using Hermione to manipulate him.

_Father…acting like the Dark Lord himself…_

"What should we do with the girl?" The other Death Eater asked as they dug their wand deeper into Hermione's neck.

"...She will come with us," Lucius finally responded, thinking and preplanning for a moment.

The Death Eater cackled evilly and a few select of them made their way out the door, including the one that Hermione was currently captured by. Another Death Eater and Lucius stopped in front of the door, staring curiously at the two infuriated boys.

"What is to be done with them?" the Death Eater asked. "Should we kill the boy?" they pointed their wand, slightly flickering with a light of a toxic green, towards Harry.

"Leave them here," Lucius ordered sternly.

"But they'll escape!" the Death Eater complained. "And tell the Order. Everything –"

" – I said," Lucius cut in. "Leave them here."

"…What must be done with them?" Lucius's comrade asked, a little quaver of impatience rising up and painted all over his tone.

"Oh, we won't have to do anything with these two, nothing at all," Lucius raised his eyebrows matter-of-factly. "Because we know they won't leave _without_ – " he turned towards his son. " – that filthy little Mudblood."

Lucius flashed Draco and Harry one last antagonistic glare before slamming the door shut, the dark covering them like a thick blanket once more, and the sound of the closing door echoed several times before finally disappearing to another place.

Harry watched Draco sink to his knees and he could swear he could hear slight sobs under the strands of hair covering his face – Draco was in the worst shape he had ever seen him in.

* * *

**Okay, I'm going to tell you all this now – a really close friend of mine is arriving from Oregon the day after school ends (the 17th) and staying with me for 2 weeks, and during the time I would be pretty much having the time of my life because I haven't seen her in a while – and because its only the beginning of my summer vacation. I also have a lot of other internet stuff to catch up on, so between the time, I will try to update before 2 or 3 weeks time. If I can't, then maybe I'll have a couple of more oneshots, who knows. What really helps is the number of reviews I get, because you know me – I use reviews pretty much like you use oxygen. Thanks for reading and I'll see you all soon!**


	23. Subdued And Voiceless

**Hmm, so I updated sooner than I thought. WAY sooner.Well, I've managed to find a lot of time since school's done. As always, thank you very much for the reviews, I'd never thought I would get this many! Anyway, the chapter begins in 3rd-person once again and then it reverts to Hermione. And since the last chapter was kind of short, here's a long one. In fact, it's the longest chapter so far in the whole story :)

* * *

**

"Potter, you better not slow me down if you wish to accompany me," Dracosnarled once he had enough strength to get up and open the door. "You understand that?"

"I don't have to follow all your haughty orders, Malfoy," Harry snapped, following Draco and closing the door behind him once they were both out. "But we're going to have to work together."

"As much as I hate to agree with someone like you, Potter, you're right," Draco confessed, taking a deep sigh. "For _once_."

Harry ignored his last remark and held his wand in his hand firmly before taking several steps forward, looking down at the dark pit below the enchanted stairs. He wiped some sweat on his forehead off with his sleeve, feeling some small bumps from his scar.

"Where do you reckon they've taken her?"

Draco scoffed and shrugged very indignantly before taking his own wand out. He took a great, wide look around the Enchanted Stairways area before letting in another deep sigh.

"Let's get to the Common Rooms. Maybe someone knows," Harry suggested as he stood in front of the edge of the floor, waiting for a stairway to levitate itself in front of him. Draco remained behind him, not wanting to have any eye contact with Harry whatsoever.

As soon as a small stairway arose in front of Harry's feet, they began walking, Draco strutting behind Harry slowly. They both held their wands tightly in the uncomfortable and infuriating silence as their footsteps were the only noise in the spacious area.

Beginning to lose some self-hope, Draco began to ponder about whether or not Hermione will survive this time – they were both lucky to make it out of their first dangerous encounter with the Death Eaters. And the thought that his father was getting too involved with them sickened him to the roots; Draco couldn't believe he actually _hated_ his own father now, for the thought of his friendless family was on the verge of breaking apart once and for all…

"Say, how _did_ you and Hermione get together?" Harry asked curiously out of nowhere, slowing down his pace as if they were in an everyday situation.

Draco looked at Harry gruesomely before coming to a complete halt.

"It's none of your business, Potter, and since when were you so concerned?" he said nastily through widened but tired eyes.

"Drop your ridiculous act, Malfoy, I was just wondering," Harry pointed out innocently, hoping to ease down Draco's tension. He knew that if his condition got any worse, Harry wasn't standing in the middle of a safe path anymore.

But Draco thought over a few other concepts rather quickly. Maybe he could discover new things about Hermione by discussing over things, and perhaps it may even lift his spirits and hope into finding and rescuing her.

Although he knew Harry wasn't expecting him to answer, Draco began the story.

"It all started that one day on the train," he started steadily but casually. "Didn't Weasley tell you about it?"

"About that encounter between you, Parkinson, Ron and Hermione? He did." Harry resumed his walking; growing slightly impatient with the pace Draco was taking behind him. "How did that start everything?"

Draco wasn't too fond about Harry interrupting him with questions, seeing that he wasn't planning to tell him everything in the first place. But he dealt with it, for he himself was in high hopes of getting over everything.

"Well, I'm going to have to say that Pansy and Weasley's jealousy kind of added on to everything," he added unwillingly. "If it wasn't for their uncontrollable tempers, Hermione and I would have never spoken to each other in the first place that one night."

"What are you talking about?" Harry questioned, bewildered. "I don't recall Hermione telling me you two met in the middle of the night...didn't you two get caught?"

"Don't you remember _anything_, Potter?" Draco raised his eyebrows. "You were there, that one morning when the both of us were found dozing off on chairs."

It took a while for Harry to remember, for the thought of Draco telling him all this alone was surprising enough.

"Oh."

Draco rolled his eyes and placed his wand in his pocket for danger didn't seem to be anywhere near them at the moment. He didn't know how to start off the next part of his story, so he waited for Harry to ask him any further.

"Wasn't Hermione concerned about Ron? I mean, well, after what happened to them in their sixth year..." Harry said, trailing off for Draco to pick up next.

"I wouldn't know, she doesn't really talk about Weasley much, I guess his insane jealousy has to do something with it."

"Parkinson?"

"Pansy? Don't even get me started with her," a slight emotion of eagerness rose up into Draco's face as he clearly couldn't wait to continue about Pansy's countless complaints. "I mean, we're friends and everything, we've always have been - but, just not as close as before, ever since Hermione and I have been seeing each other. It kind of troubles me to see her so lonely, but whenever I try to talk to her, she always finds a way to run the opposite direction."

"Crabbe and Goyle?" Harry asked, and a hint of laughter was detectable.

"Those half-wit dolts? I couldn't possibly care less about those two blokes," Draco added, scoffing in between.

But to himself, Dracoreviewed over something- this was going absolutelynowhere. Harry has just been asking him multiple questions, and his yearning of trying to find something new about Hermione wasn't sucessful. There had to be _something_ that Hermione hadn't told Draco and just to her friends, but what? What did she really think of him? The only way to find out was to ask Harry directly and unhesitatingly.

And that's what Draco did.

"What has Hermione been saying about me?" he queried, and surprisingly enough there was no mischievous tone in his voice. "Something that she has only been telling all you Gryffindors?"

Harry looked at him, appalled, but he didn't fret with answering.

"I wouldn't know everything she's been saying about you, I reckon she's been telling most of it to Ginny," he said naturally. "But she has been telling me a couple of things."

Draco, deadly curious, wouldn't stop to wait for more information. He needed to know everything.

"What kind of things?"

"Well, I remember her saying something about her life being dangerously at risk..."

Draco felt the back of his neck prickle and several droplets of sweat rolled down behind it. Is that what she really thought the whole time? Did she think that hanging around Draco was considered a _risk_? He started to worry if maybe he could change that fact now; if he could save her and her opinions might even dare to change...

"Other than that, however," Harry started again. "She told me something along the lines about being able to feel the daring emotion, seeing as Hermione isn't the kind of person to go out and handle these kinds of situation on her own. I dunno anything else really, I guess she's saying she likes feeling protected."

The thought of Hermione appreciating his protection enlightened Draco fromthe previous dwellings of before. But that wasn't why Draco was unbelievably depressed at the moment.

"Potter, we better hurry," he said, beginning to run, not wanting to waste another minute. He was far too absorbed and preoccupied by the thoughts of Hermione he didn't notice how much time their conversation took up.

Harry opened his mouth to respond to Draco's pompous request but he had no need to - for a cluster of students in their pajamas emerged from a corner once more.

"_HARRY_!" A mild-faced Ginny Weasley called out, shoving her way to the front of the crowd. Once doing so, she ran to Harry and embraced him so fiercely it almost took him down.

"Ginny," Harry mumured into her fiery red locks, hurriedly giving her a hug. "Are you all right? Where did Ron go?"

She raised her shoulders a bit and pulled away from Harry's embrace, looking into his glistening green eyes innocently.

"He went along with Neville and Seamus," she said as if this was an everyday situation. "Earlier while we were looking around the left wing corridor, we heard a scream, and I'm sure it was Hermione. I insisted I go along, but then Demelza and her friends found me so I decided to go with them instead. Maybe you should go look for Ron. And -"

She stopped as she deteced a blonde boy in the corner of her eye, finally noticing Draco standing there.

Ginny grimaced at him before turning to Harry.

"What's _he_ doing here?"

Harry shook his head meaningfullyat Ginny as if telling her that he was not up to destruction. She seemed to buy his gesture, or something that would seem like an excuse. Turning back to the crowd of pajama-covered students, she waved goodbye and wished him good luck as she and her friends continued their search for help.

Once Ginny and the other students were out of sight, Draco scoffed and folded his arms across his chest, staring at Harry with a cross manner.

"As much as it disgusts me to work with you, Potter, especially the fact that I have to look for Weasley _and_ Longbottom, I'll come along," Draco said persistently. "And there's that Finnigan too..."

"Where else would you go?" Harry asked him, a smart tone ringing all over his voice.

Draco didn't respond as he decided to take the lead this time into the black darkness. Maybe there was still enough time left.

* * *

_Hermione_

* * *

White puffy clouds emerged from my mouth as I shivered in the cold storage room, wandless and defenseless. The only things residing in here with me was a rejected chair and moth-eaten curtains with numerous holes in them; covering a high window. Frost and mist swirled around the corners of the window, decorating in its natural way. 

I don't remember anything. The last thing I remember was a bright blinding light, likely from a _Stupefy_ spell, being dragged away, and screaming uncontrollably until I was knocked out. Wherever I was now, I know that I was helpless without the help of Harry and Draco and at the moment I could only pray that they would be all right.

But, something I did have was the enchanted brooch I gave to Draco. I could feel the slight bump in one of my pockets as it illuminated slightly for my pocket was quite tight. A small color show of emerald, white and silver began to slowly dance across the hard merciless floor. At the moment, there was no use for it so I didn't take it out yet.

There was a door, of course, leading to the outside of this lonely room. It was unsurprisingly locked, and no matter how many times I tried, it wouldn't open. As for now I just sat on the chair with my chin to my knees, wondering what I should do next.

_I wonder how Harry and Draco were cooperating right now_, I thought. _Those two were never the best to get along..._

I rocked back and forth in my chair for it was the only possible way to keep me occupied from negative thoughts. Rubbing my arms for minimum warmth my breathing began to grow fast and uneven as I wondered howmuch longer I could stand this temperature. Where _was_ I?

Pulling the chair towards the curtains, I stood on top of it with cautious balance for the chair was on the verge of breaking. I pulled the curtains away and stood on my toes, fingers gripping the edge of the window to take a peek.

I couldn't see anything but the cloudless, star-strewn night sky. There was no mountains or other towers to be seen in the far distance - nothing. I must have been in some storage room of the Astronomy Tower, the highest tower in Howarts Castle. I _must_ have been right.

Just then, out of nowhere, I heard clinking noises from the other side of the door and there stood Lucius Malfoy unmasked, but still wearing his Death Eater cloak.

"My my, what are we doing here?" He said to the sight of me peeking out the windows. I immediately attempted to jump off the chair and place it where it was before, but I tripped in the process.

"You've gotten lucky this time," he sneered.

And with that, another Death Eater pulled in two boys I knew well, throwing them on the hard ground.

"Ron! Neville!" I called out, rushing over to their collasped bodies.

Lucius chuckled to himself and without any other words, slammed the door shut, locking it.

I bent over Ron, shaking him gently to knock some life and energy back into him. I already knew he was all right, he was just immensely fatigue. As for Neville, he groaned as he brought himself up and looked around the small room, his face highly frustrated with stress painted all over his expressions. After a couple of moments Ron finally rolled on his back and stood up gradually.

"Ron, Neville!" I repeated. "Are you two okay? Tell me everything that happened!"

"We thought we _lost_ you, 'Mione," Ron said gently, slightly scared. "Neville, Seamus and I heard you screaming somewhere across the corridors but we lost you. We couldn't keep up."

"...Seamus came along?" I asked, puzzled.

"Yeah, well, he sort of chickened out after we heard your scream," Neville continued. "He said he was going to 'call for help', but I doubt it..."

"This is bloody mad," Ron spoke, on the edge of yelling his heart out. "I mean, aren't the _teachers_ aware that there are Death Eaters in the castle?"

"I've been wondering about that too, really," I responded. "But when Draco and I got to the library, Madam Pince or Filch was nowhere near us...and all the lights were out."

"_Malfoy_ came with you?" Neville and Ron both blurted out at the same time, completely dumbfounded.

"...Yes, he did," I said, particularly annoyed that they weren't used to the presence of him yet. "Your problem?"

"...Nothing," Ron mumbled to himself, slightly turning away. He instantly brought Draco out-of-subject. "...How are we going to get out of here? Where did Harry go?"

"He's with Draco."

"Let's just hope that we'll be able to trust them in rescuing us," a slight hint of laughter was heard in Neville's voice. "This is going to take a while, we can be sure of that..."

Several seconds of unexpected silence hovered over us as we all thought about escape plans. I asked them for their wands, but theirs were taken away as well. This was Christmas Break all over again, and the current situation began to frustrate me greatly as I sat there, with no other choice but to stay and wait with Neville and Ron.

Why did it have to come to something like this? Why couldn't Draco's father just _understand_ that there was nothing he could do about our feelings for each other? I know he was a determined man, teaching Draco about the line between Purebloods and Muggleborns, but he had _no_ excuse for this. It eased me up a little that his mother didn't think too much of it for she had more feelings for her son than her father did, but I'm not too sure yet.

"Say, 'Mione?" Ron asked me while he peeped out the window. My head and Neville's shot up.

"Yes?"

"Has Harry already told you what he plans to do about...the Dark Lord?" Ron questioned, scrunching his nose a little.

"Of course. He plans to find the Horcruxes and defeat the Dark Lord once and for all," I recollected this information from my dreadful sixth year. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, I take it he hasn't told you the rest of it yet," Ron stepped away from the window and leaned against the wall opposite me. "He hasn't had the time to. He needs help."

I crossed my arms and looked at him dubiously, for I remember clearly Harry telling us he would find it himself. I knew it; I _knew _he would ask for help sooner or later, for that job was far too dangerous for one person to do, even Harry.

"How come he's been running low on time?" I queried Ron, eyeing him carefully. "I don't remember him doing anything involving such _adventure _this year if you mirror it to his previous six years."

"No offense, but I think it's just you, Hermione," Neville mumbled, his lip quivering a little. "You haven't been hanging around Harry and them as much as you used to. Didn't they tell you anything?"

Not wanting to seem rude and no offense taken; I didn't want to tell them that I was growing impatient and wanted them to cut to the chase - although I really did. I know that somewhere hidden in this that they were taking Draco for the blame of my time, but I didn't even dare mention that either. I wasn't in the mood for another screaming row, mainly involving Ron.

"No, they haven't." I said flatly. "What have they been discussing?"

"Harry has been too preoccupied with all this bloody chaos the Death Eaters have been causing," Ron explained, leaning foward from the wall. "There has been no sign about another Horcrux, doing all of this hasn't been easy for him ever since Dumbledore...died."

"So he's saying he needs our help? During the school year?" I jerked my head foward to make sure he gave me undivided and attentive attention.

"Er...I guess so," he replied,lifting his shoulders up a bit. "I understand if you won't be able to, I mean, with all these Death Eaters chasing after you and everything..."

"Tell me more of this later; tell me _everything_ later," I put several strands of hair behind my ear as I turned around to face the locked door. "We need to get a way out of here first."

Neville walked around the room, observing the walls and window very carefully. He took numerous deep sighs of failure, gladly offering to give up and wait for something to happen. He stood by me and placed his ear on the door, squinting his eyes and pressing it harder to detect any voices or conversation on the other side.

"Anything, Neville?" Ron whispered, still in the middle of the room, rubbing his arms for warmth.

"No," Neville murmured. "Do you think they're not there anym-"

Suddenly, from the other side of the door came a vibration so huge Neville and I were knocked to the ground. Someone kicked the door and after a few seconds, opened the door with a key in their hands.With weak feet, Ronstepped over to where Neville and I was, his face shining with fear.

"Ron, what're you looking at?" I asked him, looking directly at his widened blue eyes.

But he didn't have to answer me for that. I averted from Ron slightly and faced the doorway, my faceinstantly changing from concerned to a mixture of frightened and worried. Neville huddled behind us, peeking through the space between my shoulder and Ron's.

A Death Eater stepped into the room without a word, grabbing Ron by the collar. Ron whimpered and tried to yank away the Death Eater's strong grip, failing in the process. I leaned foward and tried to pull him back, but Neville pulled me back the opposite way for he didn't want the Death Eater anywhere near me.

As soon as Ron was out of sight and both the Death Eater and him disappeared in the dark passageway with a fiery glow flickering across it, two other Death Eaters arrived and took Neville and me, seizing the both of us with their tight grip. Neville's feet stomped on the ground as they slowly slid across the hard floor, himself doing his own fair share of screaming. Attempting to pull myself away from the Death Eater, I dug my nails into their arm, discovering shortly after it had no effect.

They took us up a series of spiral staircases; the higher we went the brighter. Where they planned to take us glowed with an eerie blue, a few faint voices screaming at the top. I couldn't do anything to prevent whatever was happening, so I walked up the stairs as quietly as I could.

From only a few inches behind me, Neville wasn't doing a very sufficient job of walking up the stairs and keeping silent. He was trembling so extremely and he couldn't stop from looking over his shoulder, unaware that there seemed to be nothing behind the both of us. Every now and then he shot me a few flurried looks, but when I returned them with a gentle but scolding glare, he stopped and calmed down.

Once the long set of stairs was finally over, we were brought to the roof of what I knew was theAstronomy Tower - the highest in the castle. The night wind blew my hair and a bright round full moon stared down at us with a strong glow. Neville leaned over to the side a bit to look over the edge of the tower; shuffling back to his original spot once he realized that it was, of course, a long way down.

A group of Death Eaters huddled on the other side of the roof along with Ron and two other young boys.

"Harry! _DRACO_!" I bellowed, running foward, only to be stopped by the seizing and painful grip from the Death Eater. They yanked me back with the collar and I could feel myself slowly running out of air. Neville didn't even dare talk and take the same risk I did; he plainly stood there, his lip quivering with fear.

Both of the Death Eaters gradually brought the both of us to the front of the group of others. Ron cocked his head to the side as if telling me to run away, but well, I _couldn't_.

As I have expected, Lucius stepped foward from behind Draco and Harry to face Ron, Neville, and me. Crossing his arms, he signaled the Death Eaters behind us to bring Draco and Harry foward. They did, and I could hear a few indistinct cackles from under their masks.

"Hermione," Draco said first, panting. I was enchanted just to even hear his voice."I'm-"

"-_Don't_ speak to her, Draco," Lucius cut in, his nostrils flaring and his eyes gazing down upon him threateningly. "You've had plenty of time before."

"You're not the Dark Lord, Father!" Draco shot back, the rest of us looking at him with shocked expressions on our faces. "I no longer wish to be a part of this!"

I expected Lucius to turn around to face Draco and cause some immense physical pain on his own son, but he didn't. Instead, he merely raised his eyebrows and started laughing to himself.

How could he be _laughing_ at a time like this?

"Let us go," Harry demanded dangerously. "Now."

Lucius laughed with more of an eccentric manner this time, but his eyes told all that he was deinitely not pleased. Neville

"Do you honestly think I would do something like that, _Harry_?" he emphasized, trying to rankle Harry with the use of his name - it seemed to work. "I don't think that would be th-"

"Shut up!" Draco yelled, trying to shake himself away from the grip of the fierce Death Eater.

Now enraged with uncontrollable anger, Lucius turned completely around to face Draco. He approached him as he reached for his wand in his cloak, Draco staring at him without a single blink. Harry was dead silent and couldn't believe the scene his eyes displyaed before him. Neville's feet shook tremendously and my whole mouth went dry.

Lucius pointed his wand towards Draco's neck, only about ten feet away from him. Draco ceased his breathing for a moment, and lowered his head to stare at the ground, avoiding the evil glare from his own father's eyes.

"_How could you do this_?" I whispered to myself. "_Your own son_..."

Apparently I've spoken louder for only me to hear as in cue,Lucius reverted halfway, standing in-between my stare and Draco's. His hand moved away from Draco's wake, only to face me instead. I jerked my head backward slightly until I could no longer, for the long fingers of the Death Eater still held the scruff of my collar.

The edges of Lucius' mouth curled up slightly before he spoke.

"I will hear no more from you, Mudblood," he leaned foward a bit. "_Silencio_!"

A small spark of light rapidly whoosed from the tip of his long, slender wand and surrounded me before I knew it. There wasa strange concealing feeling around myself, especially around my mouth. From behind me, I could hear gasps and I could feel the Death Eater holding me back up, not wanting to be effected by the spell.

Next thing I knew, I felt as normal as I ever would have. My mouth felt as it had for my whole life now.

Lucius faced Draco once more and firmly kept his wand in the air. Harry and Neville both stood there with their mouths wide open, the both of them struggling to escape. And even Ron showed an emotion pity in his face, even if it wasn't directly presented. A tear trickled down my cheek, and my breathing began to lessen. This was the peak of apprehension, and it made my heart terribly heavy.

"Father...please _don't_-" Draco begged, his knees sinking down as he still stood up; frail.

"-You're no son of mine, Draco," Lucius hissed, rising the tip of his wand. "And it's about time I let that happen."

From where I was standing, I could clearly see sparks of bright green forming at the end of his wand as it was aimed directly toward Draco. And as with almost everyone at the current scene, I knew what those green lights meant. Draco had to move now, or he would...

"_NO_!" I shouted to the point my own voice rang into my ears.

But no one heard me. Nota single sound. My mouth did move, but my voice was still imprisoned within the boundaries that the spell had inflicted upon my body.

"_Avada Kedavra_!"

A fierce jet of green light emerged from his wand and sped towards Draco.

I closed my eyes and sobbed with silence, turning my face away from the horriblethought. Although I was silenced from speaking, I could still hear like always, and a shrilling scream filled my ears and everyone elses. The tears rolled down faster and I couldn't prevent them from coming, and since no one could hear me - I sobbed like there was no tomorrow, no matter how much I would regret it after.

Daring myself to look, I blinked my eyes open, shaking the tears off my eyelashes. My eyes were more than watery and it was hard to see, but from what I could make out of -

There was a tall blonde figure still standing where he was, but there seemed to be a small absence of black.

Black. Black cloak. The Death Eater that was there before didn't seem to be there any longer.

Were my eyes decieving me? Not believing what I thought I was seeing, I rubbed away my tears and flipped my bushy hair out of my eyes. My nose crinkled and as I sniffled, I gasped with relief and surprise. Harry, Ron, and Neville were unable to speak; their mouths were open with shock and they stared with a mixture of disbelief and thankfulness.

"Don't," Draco said, still alive,turning away from the edge of the tower. "Make me do that again."

I shook my head with confusion. What just happened?

Ron happened to catch the devious glint in my eye and without any further questions, answered my nonverbal request.

"Hermione," he said, not caring if Lucius was there to listen. "Malfoy instantly turned around and pulled the Death Eater towards the direction of the curse, and it hit him instead. He fell off the tower."

_So that means_, I thought. _If Ron was telling the truth, it was the Death Eater that was killed; the Death Eater who screamed_...

The heaviness dwelling in my heart seemed to lighten up and soften up sufficiently for the moment, but the current situation prevented any further ease to come upon me. Neville and Harry for some reason seemed calmer, and Ron was growing tired and seemed desperate to leave and talk everything over. Exactly like the rest of us.

Draco continued to shoot cold stares at his father, who was far more than enraged.

Lucius was more angry than I've ever seen him; his eyes were bulging out and his long blonde hair was ruffled. He placed his wand back into his robes, and turned away to face the Death Eaters that were holding me, Ron, Neville, and Harry.

"Bring them here!" He shouted. Another choice Death Eater took hold of Draco, and the moment he did, Draco started to shake and attempted to punch the Death Eater, but wasn't sucessful. Even someone with strength as him was unable to do the task.

Scared to the point I felt petrified, my body froze completely as I was rapidly being brought to the very edge of the tower. We were all lined up on the side and the ends of our shoes were perhaps even an inch away from falling down the long, endless tower. I turned my head away to avoid the horrendous sight, but Lucius pushed my head back to its original position.

Ron and Neville were both whimpering very loudly, whereas Harry and Draco were as silent as ever.

"Should we kill them?" a raspy Death Eater said, whipping out his wand.

"...Let them suffer," Lucius said without thinking. "After all, it is a -" he turned to me. "-long way down..."

I furrowed my eyebrows at him but immediately looked down at the bottom of the tower, which seemed a mile down. I couldn't see anything at the bottom for the blanket of night concealed everything within the human eye.

A couple of laughing Death Eaters stepped back and I could hear another set of footsteps come foward.

Turning to Draco, he seemed like he was waiting for ages for me to take a good long stare at him.

"Hermione," Draco began.

But before he could continue speaking, before I was able to melt from his words - a sudden obstacle met the small of my back and I was kicked foward; myself instantly feeling the sharp wind hitting against my face and cheeks as my hair flew above me.

I wanted to tell Draco that I would love him whatever came upon us, but no one would hear me. The silencing spell was still taking effect upon me, and because of that, I started crying again, my tears flowing up instead of its usual down.

As hard as it was, I was proud that I was even able to do it - I closed my eyes and just wished, _prayed_ - that something would save us all.

* * *

**This is final now. I know I'm not going to update for a while unless I have a lot of time. My friend will be coming in less than 72 hours now, so I hope to see you guys soon! Thank you those who had read it this far and please, please review. :)**


	24. Dilemma at Twilight

**Hello everyone! I'm back and on the roll. I'm very pleased to see several new readers and very supporting reviews from the old ones! There has also been a great rise in alerts for this story and also a lot more faves - thank you all very, very much! I've had a great time ever since my last update and I want to thank all of you for waiting so patiently. My friend is still here and I'm still enjoying my summer, but I've found enough time to update. She will be leaving in a few days so I don't think it will be too long once I officially start continuing this fic. Anyway, this chapter is pretty long and it's going to start in Hermione's point-of-view, then a really short one from Draco, and then it will revert to a little bit of 3rd-person (Narration). Thank you again and I hope you enjoy reading!

* * *

**

_Hermione

* * *

_

Cold wind slapped against my face and my hair flew up; the sounds of our robes flapping taking over all other sound. I screamed my lungs out, only to be completely unheard and silent. The necklace that Ginny had given to me during Christmas flew up and touched my forehead. All of our eyes were squinting from the painful sting from the powerful downfall wind, and no matter how many times I tried to call for help, no one seemed to hear me.

When the courtyard was completely into view and we fell past the halfway point of the Astronomy tower, Neville began to scream tremendously while Harry and Draco didn't make a sound. As for Ron, he let out some slight noises of whimpering and just covered his eyes with his cold palms. My tears were the only things coming out of me and they were impossible to stop with all the motion going against them.

But suddenly, a familiar scream that didn't belong to any of us called our names from below.

"Ron! Hermione! HARRY!"

With all the strength that remained inside me, I managed to bring my hand down and wipe away some of the interfering tears and rub them sufficicently until I could see who was standing at the bottom, waiting for all of us.

It was Ginny, standing there alone.

All of us snapped back into reality and looked at her; Harry waving his hand signaling her to do something to prevent a painful and deadly fall. Ron ceased his whimpering and screamed out her name and Neville couldn't look any happier to see her. Draco looked at her blankly, but in a positive way.

_Please, Ginny,_ the words vocalized in my head. _Please do something!_

I couldn't end my life here - not now. Why did it all have to happen this year, when I just grew close with Draco? And although he was here, falling right next to me, I felt like I've lost any possible contact with him. I missed the feeling of my fingers running through his hair, tracing against his skin, and especially the taste of the kiss that belonged to no one else but him.

And then, when we all remained just a few feet from the ground, barely crashing onto Ginny -

"_IMMOBULUS_!" she called out, a transparent sonic wave-like substance emerging from the tip of her imperfect wand.

When the mysterious wave-like motions came in contact with each of our bodies, a vibe rang through each of us like a giant heartbeat - we were completely motionless. I could still blink my eyes and move my mouth, but we all floated uncontrollably in the empty air. Harry sighed in relief and Neville even had a smile gradually forming on his cold blue face.

Ginny walked foward without a word, and with the flick of a wand, the strong force holding us let go and we all were placed safely on our feet. Ginny immediately ran up to Harry and gave him another tight hug, muttering to herself as she buried her face into his shoulder.

"I'm so glad you're okay," Ginny sniffled, slightly sobbing. Harry smiled back at her without question and embraced her back.

Ron wiped some dust off his pants and Neville approached Ginny after she pulled away from Harry, thanking her over and over again. Ginny welcomed him and offered him a friendly hug.

Everyone was alive. It was a miracle.

I stood there, happy beyond reason, as I watched everybody talk to each other and give one another words of thanks. I placed my hands inside my robes to keep warm, but I needed more than this to be completely satisfied. I still couldn't speak after all, but all that traced away from my mind temporarily when I felt a tap on my shoulder.

Turning around instantly, I turned and looked up, face-to-face with him. Tears were able to make their way, flowing out of my eyes again - and they were unstoppable.

Before attempting to give him a weak smile, I jumped to my feet and wrapped my arms around his neck. Everything surrounding the two of us seemed to melt away completely and my heart sank greatly as I looked up into those slate, lonely gray eyes of his. He looked down at me with a sober touch, and he finally pulled me into a heart-wrenching hug.

The feeling of Draco's robes...his hair...the smell of his ocean-like scent - it was all too irresistible.

I slipped my hands away from his neck and instead placed them on the small of his back; bringing myself closer and cherishing every safe little moment we had left together. The warmth from his robes ceased my constant shivering and I felt more safe than I have ever been before - even after all of those other times. And although it felt like the very first time, it wasn't difficult at all to relive all the past experiences.

"We've...made it, Hermione," Draco whispered, stroking my hair quietly with his chin placed on top of my head. The shocking yet enchanting sound of his voice only caused me to weep louder, stronger - but I kept myself where I was. I didn't care if everyone was there to watch - it all felt too magical to stop.

"Hermione?" Draco asked.

I looked up at him once again, a bit puzzled.

"What is it?" I questioned.

Then suddenly an emotion of pity crawled all over his face, replacing everything else. He looked down away from me for a while and it was only moments later when his eyes reverted towards my own again; himself smiling and shaking his head. After that he hugged me again like nothing ever happened.

Oh. The silencing spells' effect still didn't wear off on me and whatever I would say, I still wouldn't be heard.

We pulled away from one another and I stood aside him. From the corner of my eye I could see Ron grimacing at the sight of us together again, and I completely turned my head around to see Ginny approaching Draco.

Her face had a hint of a pout still sprawled about, but I can see she didn't mean any offense. Harry stood behind her, looking at her, bewildered. Ginny clenched her fists and offered me a quick unplanned smile, as I merely returned a confused look. What was she planning to say or do? Whatever it was, she had Harry there with her, no matter how much he didn't want to be.

"I want to thank you," Ginny said flatly to Draco, some of the spunk and happiness from her face fading away. Harry cast a wondering glance around all of us, pondering the meaning of Ginny's words. "For...well, looking after Hemione."

Draco shrugged his shoulders and it was somewhat unbelievable that once doing so, Ginny gave him an awfully weak smile and strutted away with Harry towards Ron and Neville. From that moment on, he glared at her with disbelief.

Shortly following Ginny's brief statements, Harry, Ginny, Ron and Neville approached us.

"We have to leave, _now_," she told us, mainly focusing on me. She was still not too fond with the fact that Draco still stood there lividly. "The Death Eaters are still roaming around the castle, and I've decided we should stay somewhere temporarily. We can apparate to Hogsmeade once we get in the Forbidden Forest."

Draco fought not to laugh but looked at her sternly at the same time. Ginny deteced this and her face, without waiting, hardened in annoyance. Her fists tightened and I caught a glimpse of Harry stepping foward dangerously. Ron snarled and Neville looked at everyone as confused as I've ever seen him.

"Whoever said you were ever going to be in charge, _Weaselette_?" Draco said incredulously, emphasizing as he introduced his new nickname for Ginny to her. "Listen, I don't take orders from a filthy-"

"I don't have time to listen to your childish requests, Malfoy," Ginny snapped. "Excuse me, but I saved your life!" She pulled her wand out of her pockets rapidly. "If you want, I could take that back right now-"

"Stop it!" Neville shouted as Harry pulled Ginny and I pulled Draco away. It infuriated me on how he couldn't control that monstrous temper of his, but then again, everyone was stressed during the current situation. Ron rolled his eyes and shrugged at me, turning to Harry to talk to him afterwards.

"But there's all kinds of creatures in the forest," I heard Ron say to Harry. "It's not safe!"

"We can't apparate out of the school if we're within the school grounds," Ginny pointed out. "We need to go! We can use my wand since all of you don't have yours."

"Come on! Let's hurry!" Neville suggested as me began to speed-walk toward the forest. We all followed him after it was agreed among all of us.

Our feet stomped among the wet grass, small splashes of water soaking our shoes and socks. Like before white puffs came out of our mouths and we all ran as fast as we could, not even daring to look back, no matter how tempting it would be. Harry ran ahead of us, while Ginny struggled to keep up with the fast runner. Ron and Neville were behind them and it was only unfortunate that Draco and I were dead last. I found my legs too weak and my strength too frail to keep up at a high sprint like they were.

"Hurry up, you two!" Ron screeched, turning halfway around. He gestured us to speed up.

Draco scoffed and I took his hand for he took a significant rise in speed. I wanted to tell him that he was going a little too fast for my liking, but he wouldn't hear me - so I tugged his sleeve slightly. He didn't even seem to feel it for he was far too focused with leaving the school grounds. And as I had no other choice left, I tried my best to keep up with him.

"We're almost there," I heard Draco say in an undertone. He ran even faster and I knew if he kept this up, I would grow tired even more rapidly than I already was and even possibly fall behind. His hand was growing slightly sweaty and I found it even harder to keep an acceptable pace. When I looked straight ahead, I could see that Harry and Ginny were almost nearly concealed with the dark shadows coming from the Forbidden Forest. Ron kept looking over his shoulder and rolling his eyes on how far behind we were.

Using up all the strength I had left, I placed all my focus in running and to my surprise, I even outran Draco by a few feet. I turned a slight bit around and offered my hand to him which he took without waiting, and we were almost there.

But I knew that my speedy getaway wouldn't last too long. And it didn't.

The next thing I knew was that my legs instantly felt like jelly and I couldn't support myself, resulting in a face-first fall to the cold moist grass. Squinting my eyes from the mighty pain that it inflicted upon my whole body, I grunted and tried my best to get back to my feet. Draco was only a few feet away from me and he turned around quickly to help me up.

As much as I tried to stand up by myself, it was no use. One of my legs felt slightly sprained, and whenever I tried to budge by just a bit, I felt like a rope was tightened around it. I attempted to do the same process again and again, but each of my numerous tries was clearly unsucessful. The blinding hot pain just wouldn't stop.

"It's no use for you getting up and running," Draco bleated woefully. "You have to get on my back."

I stared at him with guilt and worry, only realizing that he was dead serious.

"...Okay," I mumbled to myself, seeing as that he still couldn't hear the sound of my enclosed voice.

I got up and I felt my face turning red from my efforts as Draco lifted me up by the waist. His back supported my entire body as I clutched to the robes on his shoulders for support; just like a piggyback ride my father and I would do during earlier years. I was faintly uncomfortable, but I didn't want to point that out for it would only worry Draco more.

Harry, Ginny, Neville and Ron were already waiting under the shadows of trees of the Forbidden Forest.

"Come on!" Ron called out. "Let's hurry and get to Hogsmeade!"

And it was within seconds that darkness overcame everything and we were safe - a temporary kind of safe - within the grasp of the Forbidden Forest. Draco slid me off his back gently and I sat on a tree stump. I stroked the skin of my sprained leg which still stung but was slowly healing. I looked through a clearing of trees and took one last glance of the Hogwarts castle; wondering what was happening to the rest of the students currently being held within the castle walls.

"How's your leg?" Draco asked, kneeling in front of me and looking straight down at it.

"It's fine," I replied.

Harry, Ginny, Neville and Ron immediately turned their heads and looked at me, appalled. Draco widened his eyes and continued to stare at me, just like all the others. Neville and Ron looked at my sympathetically. What were they possibly so entertained with?

"...What?" I asked, kind of cheerfully.

Ginny stepped to the opposite side of where Draco was kneeling and had a wide grin on her face, with obviously, persisently remained.

"The silencing spell! The effect wore off," she mused.

Sighing with relief and chuckling to myself, I nodded and gave everyone my own fair share of a smile. "That took long enough."

"Ginny," Harry spoke, gesturing her to stand up, which she did shortly after. "Come on, let's Apparate. We can stay at Madame Rosmerta's until someone tells us its safe to go back."

"Good idea," Ginny replied, gathering everyone to huddle around Draco and I, for I couldn't exactly stand up by my own. She pulled her dusty wand out of her robes and blew some of the fuzz off of it before rising it to the air. Ron yawned and waited impatiently, not too thrilled that Ginny was in charge of taking us to safety.

"Get it over with," he mumured.

Ginny shot him a short, cold glare before a series of lights erupted out of the tip of her wand; the colors surrounding each and everyone one of us.

The next thing we all knew, we were standing in a very thin layer snow, in front of the familiar Three Broomsticks. Draco helped me up and with every slow step we took, we followed Harry, Ginny, Neville and Ron inside the toasty pub.

The familiar aroma of butterbeer filled our noses as Harry, Ginny, Ron and Neville pulled up seats to sit down while Draco and I sat in another slightly distant from theirs. Ron passed a suspecting glare to me but I just turned away from it - I was in no mood to stand in the middle of another pointless argument. I was just happy that we were temporarily safe and cozy, and that we were all here.

A door from the back creaked open and Madame Rosmerta burst in, some snow still on her frizzy hair and descending off her shoulders. Her nose was red and shiny, her eyes tired and puffy and her arms were shivering. She all stared at us dubiously; heavily concerned.

"What are you kids doing here? Shouldn't you all be at school?" she asked us, a small quaver rising up her voice.

Harry didn't hesitate to explain at all. He scooted back from his chair, causing an ear-piercing noise as it screeched on the ground.

"It's not safe at Hogwarts," he explained, crossing his arms. "Death Eaters arrived at the castle while we were sleeping. They managed to catch us but luckily we got away in time." Harry finished, taking a small moment to smile at Ginny.

"And who is behind all this?" Madame Rosmerta asked him, worried. "Not the Dark Lord! We haven't heard from him in a while..."

"I'm afraid not," Draco said, rising from his chair to my surprise. "I'm afraid it's all the work of my father. They're after me and Hermione, and they were planning to snatch Potter's life away while they were at it."

Madame Rosmerta stared at him with wonder, but once she stared at his platinmum blonde hair, pointed chin, pale skin and fixed gray eyes, she recognized who he was within moments. She gasped and her voice rose tremendously.

"Lucius Malfoy? That coldhearted man!" she bellowed, the sound of her voice echoing through the walls of the acceptably empty pub. "Your own father?"

Draco ignored her and just turned away to look at me, sitting back down.

An awaiting silence hovered over us as Madame Rosmerta slid off her coat, hanging it on the coat rack by the back door. She blew her nose, locked all of the doors, closed all the windows and turned off the main light with caution.

"I'll make you kids some drinks," she pointed out before strutting off to the kitchen.

Harry, Ginny, Neville and Ron instantly grew into what seemed as an interesting conversation as Draco stopped his continuous finger-tapping; turning to me, looking directly into my chocolate brown eyes. He pulled out my hands from my lap and placed it on the table, his on top of mine.

His hands were mysteriously cold...

"Hermione," he whispered, keeping complete eye contact. "Are you sure you're okay?"

It occured to me on how worrisome he was acting, but I knew he just wanted to make sure I was fine with his protection. I rose my eyebrows and beamed at him, gripping his hands tightly but gently enough.

"I'm fine. You're the one to be worried about," I traced my fingers to his temple, my fingers vibrating from the temperature I felt. "You're freezing cold!"

He looked down and cleared his throat. "It's nothing," he said before turning away.

"I'm sure a good cup of Butterbeer will help you feel better. It's only a matter of time that we get them." I said, finally high-spirited.

_

* * *

Draco

* * *

_

I gave her a small smile back before we all heard the creaking of the kitchen door. Madame Rosmerta carried two trays of Butterbeer drinks, six of them in total, one for each of us. Weaselette eagerly stood up and took four of them to their table, while Madame Rosmerta gave us ours.

Hermione took a quick sip from her cup of Butterbeer and took a deep breath. I followed gradually as I've never drank Butterbeer before. Hermione has previously told me about her occassional visits here, and I guess it wasn't all that bad. A little too sweet for my liking, however.

"So," Hermione said in-between another series of sips. "Where are we supposed to go next?"

"Who knows," I rolled my eyes at Weaselette. "I'm obviously not in charge."

That was it. I knew that I should've changed the tone of my slightly angry voice, because after I finished my statement, Hermione shifted in her seat and leaned foward, furrowing her eyebrows at me. From the perceivable glint in her eye I knew she meant no offense and she was only deeply concerned about my attitude.

"Draco, I know something's troubling you," she vocalized quietly. "Tell me."

"It's...nothing," I lied. "Really."

Her eyes narrowed a little, turning somewhat cat-like. I found it rather odd that Hermione could easily tell if one individual was lying or not; and I wasn't too fond of this uncanny ability.

"Just tell me," Hermione insisited, rising from her chair and surprisingly placing herself on my lap. She turned around and looked at me with suddenly larger eyes. "What's on your mind? You shouldn't keep everything bottled up..."

I know I've felt this way ever since our first encounter with the Death Eaters, but I've never told her my feelings directly and personally. Should I let everything out now and tell her the truth? Or just keep lying and tell her I'm fine and that she wouldn't worry? Obviously I knew that if I told her another false reason once more, she simply wouldn't buy it and would keep insisting for me to tell her the truth.

So the truth it was, I guess.

"Well," I began as she reached for her cup of Butterbeer on the other side of the table. "I know I've asked you loads of times before - but are you okay with all the danger? What I mean to say is...I'm just uptight about the whole situation. As unexpected as it is for me, well, it hasn't been having as great an impact on you either."

"So in short..." Hermione hummed, running her slender fingers along the rim of the glass.

"It's been bothering me for a long time now. I'm the reason why we're going through things like this," I repeated. I knew Hermione understood my point since we've gone through this plenty of times, but I still couldn't help but wonder - Was Hermione really okay with everything? When she needed protection, she got it, but that wasn't the issue at hand. I didn't want to tell her that _I was putting her life at risk _because that would make me seem too anxious about it.

"Draco, we've talked over this many, many times," Hermione sighed; obviously bored. Surprisingly enough, out of nowhere a grin suddenly sparkled all over her face. "And I'm going to stick with my same answer - I'm fine with it."

Hermione turned away from the table and rested her head on my shoulder, and I could see that her eyes were fluttering with tiredness. I myself grew slightly fatigue with only a hint of strength left. Hermione crossed her legs and I slid one of my hands down to her waist, bringing her closer. My face buried into her bushy but soft hair, taking in a flowery scent.

_

* * *

Narration

* * *

_

His hands ruffled through her brown locks, a usual sign of affection among the two. She raised one of her arms and gently placed it around his back, embracing him dearly. The both of them didn't have a care in the world if Hermione's friends were there to watch them; they were not about to waste a single moment of their time left together before disaster struck again.

Hermione once again shifted her weight from one leg to another as her sprain was almost fully healed. The pain was almost completely gone as she brought her cup of Butterbeer off the table, resting it on her thigh. Draco lowered his other hand, cupping one of her shoulders with the grip of his palm. A passionate and lustrous feeling flickered inside the both of them as they slowly pulled away from each other.

Her eyes met his and they locked glances as dark clashed against light. An enduring desire to embrace Draco for hours floated within Hermione, and it finally escaped. After recollecting the taste of his kiss just like she had been dreaming to, she took a swig of the sweet sugary Butterbeer mix and neighbored herself by his body again.

Everything for those few simple minutes seemed perfect, but the unlucky couple didn't have enough pleasurable time left to continue on further. Instead, Hermione prevailed by Draco's side and they both drunk their cups of Butterbeer until only a few droplets hung on the edges of the bottom, clinging for survivial.

From the other table, Ginny leaned against Harry as he tapped his fingers on the table interminably, Neville quietly swallowed his remaining Butterbeer and Ron glared at Draco and Hermione attentively. Although he knew there was nothing he could do about it and that he couldn't alter Hermione's feelings in any possible way, it disgusted him to be able to watch such displays of affection.

Sleepiness dared itself to lounge over the students; its attempt almost fully sucessful. Their eyelids fluttered and they all fought to keep them open, but the cozy atmosphere was far too enticing to stay awake and cautious. Candles on the front counter instantly lost their burning light when the cold wind lingering from outside made its way in from the weak window shutters.

Abruptly and without warning, Madame Rosmerta came in, raging from the kitchen door. Her eyes extended like that of a nocturnal creature and she was in a cold sweat. The life and hype kicked back into the students as they stood up from their seats, exchanging glances with one another. Ron spilled some Butterbeer as it splatted on his shoes, himself groaning in agony after.

"What's wrong?" Harry barked, keeping himself close to Ginny, who was looking around the room with rapid motion. "What happened?"

"T-t-the Death Eaters...are here...in Hogsmeade," Madame Rosmerta whispered, her body jittering with shock. "You all must leave...now!"

Hermione clung onto Draco's sleeve and looked at Madame Rosmerta in the eye as she watched the woman wince.

"But what about you? Will you be all right-"

"-Just GO!" Madame Rosmerta shut the window shutters firmly before she broke into a deadly panic.

"...We don't have any means of transportation! What will we do?" Neville mewled, cupping his head with his hands with flurries of worry and apprehension flowing among his system.

"-Wait," Ginny noticed as she pulled her wand out. "_Accio Rosmerta's brooms_!"

From the distance a small thud was heard - the opening of a door. Within seconds, three brooms flew their way in front of Ginny from a small room in the back of the pub. They looked old and secondhanded; they weren't the best within the areas of appearance, but the students were far too in a rush to care about such things. Madame Rosmerta pointed her finger, signaling them to hurry up and get on the brooms.

"There's three," Hermione stated. "Harry can ride with Ginny, I'll ride with Draco, and Ron - you can ride with Neville."

Ron's jaw dropped and his hands fell out of his pockets as Neville looked away, a little embarassed although he would slip the thought away from his mind shortly. Ginny let out a little titter before pulling Harry towards a broom.

Harry sat towards the front while Ginny hung behind towards the back, wrapping her arms around his waist for support. Ron rolled his eyes and sighed with disgust as he and Neville got on a broom. Draco slowly walked Hermione to the last remaining broom, the both of them stopping for a while to see how Hermione's sprain was doing.

"Can you get on? You can be in the front," Draco insisted as he guided her on the broom. Hermione eagerly got on without any questions, and although one of her legs were limping a little, she seemed to be okay at the moment.

Ginny pointed her wand threateningly at the ceiling and cast her spell. "Bombarda!"

Then, a hole that was big enough for them to go through instantly crashed open; pieces of wood plunking to the floor. Harry, Ron, and Draco kicked off their brooms and the next thing they knew, their faces were once again introduced to the cold swirling wind of the night sky. The Three Broomsticks slowly grew smaller and smaller as they sped up into the unusually cloudy sky.

As usual, Harry and Ginny rode ahead, following Ron and Neville, and behind them Draco and Hermione. With Hermione's left leg dangling off the broom uncomfortably, she moved a bit to ensure some comfort among her position. Draco continued to fly the broom at a slow but steady pace. Ginny began to fall asleep, her fiery red hair swaying in the sky as Harry turned a very fair shade of pink. Ron and Neville didn't speak to each other throughout the time passed.

A devious and curious glint came upon Hermione's eye. She cocked her head to the side and looked down at the ground which seemed to be miles away.

Through the ends of her eye, she could see a spark of bright green making its way up towards the sky. Eyeing it curiously and leaning foward with a safe distance, she squinted.

"What is _that_-?"

But the answer happened all too fast - a jet of green light burst in front of them like a beam of light, only inches away from the tip of the broom. Hermione and Ginny screamed as Neville covered his ears, manuevering the broom to help Ron to prevent a fall to their very death. Draco reached for Hermione's waist and within no time, they were both back on the broom.

"Draco...was that what I think it was?" she asked after she completely adjusted herself on the broom.

"The _Avada Kedavra_," he said with a tense touch to admit it. "That means that the-"

"_THE DEATH EATERS_!" Ginny clamored, hugging Harry's waist even tighter. "Fly faster!"

With no further stammering, each and every one of the three brooms sped faster as they all dodged the countless jets of light being aimed at them from the unfriendly, waiting Death Eaters below.

Hermione grew very uncomfortable with her still sprained leg, the rapid motion overcoming all of them and the grip from Draco around her waist. She longed to tell him to loosen up, but she was also afraid that if she would, his concerns and fear of Hermione's safety would only prevent them from getting anywhere further. So even with all the pain Hermione was enduring, she didn't want to complain.

"Just follow our broom!" Ginny bellowed, and her broom seemed to be flying away in a flash. Ron and Neville were right next to them and it wasn't destiny that Draco and Hermione were falling behind once more.

"That Weasley girl ought to stop giving me orders," Draco snarled. By now, the rest of the gang only seemed to be merely specks from where Draco and Hermione were.

"...Draco," Hermione groaned weakly as she stared down below.

"What is it?"

"This broom isn't going to keep the both of us up for long," Hermione leaned foward to show Draco the front. And she was right - the front of the broom bent and if they didn't think quickly, they might meet the end as they both knew it. "It wasn't meant to hold two people."

"What do you plan to do?" he queried, apprehension throbbing with every beat of his heart.

"...One of us has to get off," Hermione pestered before her face turned glum and the flow of her blood went cold.

Draco realized what Hermione was planning to do. Rage, anger and lunacy rushed through his head as he tried to accept the fact that he couldn't let Hermione do everything she wanted. Not this time. Her life didn't deserve to end now.

"No!" Draco clung onto her waist and continued flying the broom with the other, dodging the intermittent beams of green lights. Hermione didn't have a desire to look at the scene displayed before her as she shut her eyes, holding onto the broom tight. Everytime a stream of light was aimed at them, Draco was amazingly agile with the control of the broom as the Death Eaters missed, only by inches.

"...Okay," Draco flew into a random patch of the sky which seemed to be safe. "There doesn't seem to be any more of the lights here. Hermione?"

She wasn't doing so well. Her head was bent foward and her arms were quaking.

"...I'm fine. Just stay afloat over here for a while and -"

It was only a luckless coincidence that a wide-ranged jet of light shot in front of them, suddenly, with enough element of phenomenon that the broom leaned foward and Draco stumbled off without a scream.

Hermione's quick reflexes helped greatly as she spontaneously reached and grabbed his hand, saving him just in time. By now tears easily made their way back into Hermione's eyes and Draco could feel them softly sprinkle on his white blonde hair.

"Stop crying!" Draco bellowed, his frustration now reaching beyond the line. "Hermione! Stop it!"

He just couldn't take to see her crying again.

"Hermione? Why are you saving me? You'll be pulled down!" he yelled.

She strained to keep him up and with the stamina left within, pulled him straight up. Draco used his remaining efforts to place himself back on the broom, except this time he was placed in the front. Hermione embraced his waist as tightly as she could, but still kept him comfortably stable. Harry, Ginny, Ron and Neville were completely out of sight now, perhaps behind the unfamiliar clouds shadowing under the moon.

The front of the broom snapped open and a large portion of it plummeted down through a thick fog. Hermione and Draco stumbled and the girl wailed and fretted, trying to keep the broom in support. Draco nearly fell off again.

Hermione took hold of his waist just in time, but with Draco leaning extremely Hermione was sprung foward.

"Hermione!"

Draco bent over and held his hand out to reach for Hermione's. She was hanging off the broom while Draco was still on top, and she didn't even dare to look down. As tempting as it was, she could feel the wind surrounding her feet as her tears plunged down to nowhere.

His grip grew slick from the sweat on both of their palms, and they were merely clinging onto each other's fingers by now.

"Hermione! Why are you doing such reckless things like this!" He screamed.

Hermione's eyes batted open and she spoke what seemed to be her last words.

"Don't you always do reckless things for me?"

* * *

**So...you just LOVE cliffhangers don't you? evil smile**

**Thanks for reading this chapter! Review? And I am going to tell you guys this right now, for those of you who might be curious - all the mysteries we've read in Book 6 that we planned to figure out in the seventh installment will NOT be revealed here. I myself do not know anything about it because I do not own Harry Potter - it's all in the hands of JK Rowling. So I am just going to keep this a Draco/Hermione fic, and although Death Eaters and Lord Voldemort are involved with this story, none of those myths and rumors we've all yearned to figure out won't be solved here - I've only placed them in this story for...well, you know, some suspense and action...that kind of stuff. That has been bothering me for a while, considering this is their seventh year, so there you go. The next update will take time but I'll try my best. Reviews help!**

**PS - Before my next update, I might be writing and submitting another one-shot. I don't think you guys will like it because I plan to make it Draco/Pansy (hey, they have a place in my heart too), but if you've never read _She_ (Draco/Hermione), you're very welcome to. :)**


	25. An Unfolded Demise

**Sorry for the wait! I was too busy working on a Dramione fanfiction challenge for dhr100 at livejournal. It also took me a while to plan out the current plot to make it more understandable (trust me; it was confusing for me as well). I'm surprised to see that some of you even reviewed my Draco_Pansy_ oneshot! Anyway, Draco tells the story here, and this chapter is short because I couldn't think of anything better... Thank you for the reviews as always and here we go!

* * *

**

_Draco

* * *

_

Intense straining inflicted upon my arm as I tried my hardest to keep Hermione from falling. From where we were floating, the moonlight shone upon her face and it was slowly turning red. Her hand grew suddenly slick and she was slipping from my grip. She tried multiple times to swing her other hand foward to mount the broom once more, but it was no use. Each and every attempt led to worse as our fingers were barely clinging onto one another.

"Draco," her voice crackled. "I can-t –"

One of her fingers trembled and it was as simple as that – faster than I could have expected, than I could even imagine to happen. I experienced a shock so huge it seemed to root me to the spot.

Her body plummeted down; screaming.

"NO! HERMIONE! _HERMIONE_!"

Potter and Weaselette seemed to zoom back into view, along with that Weasley and Longbottom – all of the brooms sped downward towards Hermione, trying to catch her. The broom I was flying had a sudden decrease in speed due to its broken front, but I forced myself to continue. _I couldn't let Hermione die_. Not here, with Death Eaters roaming around.

Rough wind blowing against my face caused my eyes to water which came with constant squinting. I held on to my broom tightly, not wanting to lose track of where Hermione's body and the other brooms were.

But it all happened too fast – another series of shooting green lights sprung from the bottom, each and every one of them missing Hermione and the other brooms, including mine. It was all merely luck, and something was telling me that one of us wouldn't be so fortunate if we didn't cut to the chase. Oh _Merlin_, where was Hermione?

"POTTER!" I called out, still evading the jets of blinding light. "Where's Hermione? Can you see her!"

No one responded. From the amount of noise launching from the explosions and beams of the Avada Kedavra, I could barely hear my own voice myself. Shit, why did it have to be Hermione falling down? Why couldn't have been me instead? It was a sickening thought that I didn't act quick enough for Hermione to save my life for giving up her own – I had to rescue her, and now.

"HARRY!" The familiar voice of Weasley roared from somewhere below me. "HARRY! GINNY!"

When several streams of light seemed to fade away, I noticed that Potter and Weaselette's broom didn't seem as far from me as it seemed. They were hovering in mid-air as they waited for the lights to fade, in order to take view upon Weasley and Longbottom. Hermione...there was no visible clue of her body _anywhere_.

"What is it!" Potter yelled, slowly making his way down. I followed, keeping a reasonable distance from that filthy blood traitor of a girl.

"We've got her!" Longbottom called out, taking a deep breath afterwards.

And the moment he spoke those words, the moment I knew Hermione was okay – I sped the broom downward, not caring if I was dangerously being blinded by the lights. In no time, I was balanced right next to Weasley's broom, and there she was, hanging off the edge, coughing.

"Hermione!" I screamed, not waiting for another moment. I flew right next to Weasley's broom so that I carefully but speedily transferred her weak body onto my broom. Weasley and Longbottom flew to the top of the sky afterwards, and I followed them shortly. I placed Hermione on the back and she didn't need to ask as she rested her head on my back and wrapped her hands around my waist.

"...Draco," she said in a strained whisper.

"Don't talk, stay quiet," I ordered. "We'll be safe. It'll all be over soon."

"...You promise?" Hermione asked, her voice crackling and she coughed once more.

"I promise."

As we ascended higher and higher to the point that the trees of the Forbidden Forest looked like blotches of black ink, the Death Eater's curses seemed to temporarily flee as they awaited our next encounter with an area of range. We all flew steadily and no one seemed to be speaking, so I broke the silence desperately.

"Potter, where exactly do you plan on taking us?" I questioned him with authority ringing everywhere.

"Wherever its safe, _Malfoy_," Potter replied thouhgtlessly. I wanted to tell him that he had no right to speak to me in a such a way, but now was not the time. Hermione was the number one concern that stuck on the edge of my mind right now.

"Let's go back to Hogsmeade," Weaselette suggested. As much as I hate cooperating with a blood traitor like her, I had to agree. If the Death Eaters were somewhere locally below us, awaiting to shoot their lights – if we went to Hogsmeade we might have some time to think. And besides, Hermione needed some rest before we had to keep the life and energy back in us again.

Weasley and Longbottom decided to lead the way as they made a sharp turn around. Fog seemed to finally arrive and even more odd clouds started appear, as they annoyingly acted as obstacles which interfered with clear sight. The wind became more gentle but harshly colder as I could feel Hermione burrowing her face in between my neck and shoulder.

"...You okay back there, Hermione?" I asked, my voice barely breaking the boundary of a whisper.

There was no response. I could only turn my head around slightly, but not enough to look upon her face. She was still clinging onto my waist, but I didn't feel any of her arms or fingers move an inch.

"Hermione?" I repeated, a little louder.

She didn't start talking, but instead I felt a slight, unusually soft vibration on my shoulder. I leaned my head closer to hear what was happening. Hermione was..._snoring a little_? Asleep? I chuckled slightly at the thought and at the sound of it then continued to fly, leaving her alone to dream whatever she wanted to dream.

Even more clouds began to form in the empty, silent sky. They began to grow irritating, but from where we were hovering I could still see faint outlines of Poter and Weasley's brooms. Hermione tossed and turned her head every now and then, but I knew she was all right, slumbering safely.

"Since when did it get so cloudy?" I heard Weaselette, from a couple of feet in front of us, say.

I rolled my eyes and sighed with disgust.

"What are you, bloody blind? It's been there!" I pointed out, growing sick and tired of Weaselette's pointless remarks and questions. She, of course, completely ignored my question and I heard her scoff a bit. Waving one of my hands to brush some interfering bits of cloud away, it seemed to die down a little bit.

"Damn, I can't see anything," Potter spat. I saw several flashes of Weaselette waving some fog away, only turning out to be slightly successful. Weasley and Longbottom seemed to be in front of them, as we all grew completely silent in the long and soundless journey through the clouds. It began to grow colder and the weather bitter, but it wasn't too much for me to handle.

I felt something on my back nudge a little. Hermione was moving.

"...Draco?" she grumbled, rubbing some sleep out of her eyes. Unfortunately, she was still tired no matter what she did.

"What is it?" as I asked her, it took her a while to sit up straight and after several yawns and sniffling. "Your leg...is it still sprained?"

"No, it's fine now," Hermione pointed out as she swung it cheerfully. She removed her hands from around my waist and instead placed each of her hands on its corresponding shoulder. Her chin dug into the lower back of my neck harmlessly and I could feel her breathing against my skin. Throughout that point Hermione was awake, although I can still detect the hint of sleepiness in her, especially in her eye region.

"Where are we, Draco?" she asked, looking around at the misty surroundings.

"I have no idea, but Potter and them plan that we make way to Hogsmeade. But with all these bloody clouds..."

I could feel Hermione's eyes dart from one place to another, her head turning, looking for an opening. Several times now she sighed with failure, but she didn't plan to quit easily, for I knew that she had a persistent spirit.

"There, Draco!" she tapped my shoulder and turned my head to my left where a small, cloudless patch of sky floated. "Over there!"

I didn't waste a second as I turned my broom and it sped out of the hole, the cold air leaving our faces instantly. Hermione brought herself closer to my back for the both of us were getting rather cold, even if we were out of the clouds. Potter, Weaselette, Weasley and Longbottom we still somewhat stuck in the collection of clouds, and they were taking _forever_ to come out.

"You know you promised to get me out of this," Hermione insisted playfully, laughing at the end.

"I know. And I will." I turned around to glance at her face rather quickly, when something zipped in front of us.

Potter, Weaselette, Weasley and Longbottom were _finally_ here, hovering in front of us. Weaselette's face possessed an unhealthy shade of green and Longbottom was on the verge of dozing off to sleep. Imbeciles.

"Where were you guys?" Hermione peeked from behind my shoulder, leaning foward.

"We sort of got lost," Weasley shrugged, in feeble attempt. "'Mione, is your leg all right? You scared me with that fall."

"...Yeah, it's fine," she said happily. "Sorry about that."

From behind Potter,Weaselette's face turned from dizzy to frightened, and she looked as if she were petrified. Her eyes were widely open and her mouth was shaking, hesitating to speak. Potter turned around and turned to face her.

"Ginny, what's wrong?"

Weaselettte, still shaking, pointed out to the distance in front of us. All of our heads turned to see what she was directing us at.

There, hovering over Hogsmeade village, the familiar glowing green skull with its serpent tongue seemed as if it were glaring at us straight to the faces. From the very sight of it, Weaselette let out a muffled scream and Hermione jolted upward.

"The Dark Mark," Hermione said in a strained whisper. "Someone got murdered..."

"Must have happened after the Death Eaters went after us," Weasley groaned.

"Come on!" Weaselette ordered, as Potter's broom sped straight ahead of us and into the villages. Weasley and Longbottom followed, and I didn't have to wait to do the same either. Hermione was shaking and breathing heavily, and she was growing more frightened by the second.

"Don't worry, Hermione," I said again.

From ahead of us, I saw Weaselette's head turn around with such speed.

"Hurry up, you two!"

"Exactly what do you plan to do once we get there?" I asked angrily, for her persistent, dim-witted demands were really getting on my nerves and they refused to let go. Couldn't she just shut up?

"I have a hunch," Weaselette said, with an unusually calm voice. "I just hope I'm wrong."

In no time, our feet touched the ground exactly in front of The Three Broomsticks. The streets were completely deserted and there was no sound except for the wind and some doors swaying back and forth in the wind. It felt relieving for us to finally set foot to Earth, but from the looks on everyone's faces I knew that this feeling shouldn't last long, especially when I fixed my eyes on Hermione.

After Weasley and Longbottom seemed to have a non-verbal quarrel about who should be the one to open the door, Hermione finally stepped up and pushed it open herself. Afterwards she hurried over to my side and held on to my sleeve.

Once we were all inside, all was dark. The candles' lights were all diminished, the curtains covered a nearby window. I could make out several outlines of tables and chairs, but it was no good to walk around if thedarkness was as advanced as this. Hermione closed the door behind us.

We walked foward with caution.

"Ow, Ronald!" Hermione gasped.

"S-sorry," he apologized hurriedly. "I think I just _tripped_ on something..."

"...Hold on," Weaselette's perky voice piped up and she made her way to the window, pulling the curtains and allowing the moonlight to illuminate the room and our surroundings.

Weasley moved aside and everyone's eyes landed straight onto the ground. Several gasps of shock came while Hermione and Weaselette let out ear-piercing screams.

Madame Rosmerta's lifeless body was sprawled on the floor, her eyes and mouth still wide open as if she was still screaming. Her skin was an unhealthy pale color and her wand, a few inches away from her hand, was snapped in two. She was laying there, and from the empty look in her eyes it seemed that she was even staring at us.

Hermione began to cry as she turned away from the sight immediately, burying my face into my chest. Weaselette hurried over to Potter and did her own fair share of loud sobbing.

"...Why," Hermione sniffled. "Why did this have to happen..."

She brought her head closer and my shirt was getting slightly soaked from her tears, but I let her stay there for her comfort. She was troubled and that's the last thing I would choose to see, so I ran my fingers through my hair, trying to ease her pain.

"...S-she helped us," Weaselette moaned, sobbing harder onto Potter's shoulder. "And...she...s-she didn't deserve this!"

And from that moment I knew that the next encounter I had with my Father will be the last. This might have not been my father's doing, but from what he had done to me and Hermione, he was not going to continue. He had to be stopped somehow, and if I was the one that had to, so be it.

**

* * *

...And that's all for now. :) It wasn't very satisfying for me.I hope you enjoyed it and please review – I know there are some people out there that just read it and wait for the next update due to the amount of story alerts I have – but hey, doesn't everyone want some feedback and lovely reviews? Anyway, when I will next update I have no clue, the updates will becoming slower and slower now...urgh. **

But if you do want to see all my drabbles and oneshots for the dhr100 community at livejournal, please proceed to livejournal dot com slash community slash dhr100 . My username is 'roannaweenie'. :)

**Keep thinking and before you know it, there will be another update, lol.**


	26. Of Mudbloods and Ferrets

**Okay, I'm back with an update. Something important to know - Harry finding horcruxes, the prophecy, the mysterious R.A.B. - will NOT be involved with this story whatsoever. This story will not run along the lines of where Book 6 left off (well, Dumbledore is still dead). Do I look like JK Rowling to you? I will treat this like any seventh year with Death Eater threats (why? Angst, Action, Drama!). I think it is important that you should know that by now. :P I've decided to to tell you because I've gotten several e-mails asking. So THERE. I finally let it off my shoulders.**

**And I've reread this story a couple of times. You do not want to know how much I really want to redo all of the chapters and add new ones in between, it has been very unsatisfying, but as long as you guys like it, I'm happy. **

**Anyway, on to the point - thank you all for the reviews! I'm almost to 200 and I didn't think my story would even reach 150+. And thanks to those that even took the time to read my Dramione fics on the LJ community of dhr100! I know the last chapter wasn't as long, and this one is longer. I'm finding it very hard to find time to have written long chapters frequently like before, but when the chance comes I will gladly do so. Anyway, Hermione starts us off and it's Narration for the rest. I will shut up now so you guys can read and enjoy. :)**

_

* * *

Hermione

* * *

_

My head drooped down over my shoulders and I groaned. My back was aching terribly and I found it very painful even to walk. Most of the girls in the dormitory seemed to be fast asleep as the sky outside was still a light grey color, but Ginny's bed sheets were ruffled and messy as always, meaning she had already gotten up before me.

_I hardly got any sleep at all_, I thought as I pulled on a sweater and some jeans. While I was combing my hair in the mirror, I noticed that my eyes were only half-open and that they were slightly reddened. My cheeks were rosy and my skin seemed to have slightly abandoned some glow, as 'dull' would describe be in every possible way. I know that inside, my mind was racing with questions, hoping for answers, so I got business done and my way downstairs.

Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Neville, all looking as hyper as ever, were sitting on the cushions, discussing something.

"Good morning, Hermione," Ginny said, scooting over so I could have some room to sit. Neville quirked his head to the side, looking at me with such question.

"What is it, Neville?" I asked him.

"...N-nothing, it looks like you could use some more sleep," Neville let the thought slide off his mind as he continued to stare into space, waiting for some conversation to start. I could tell that something was stirring up inside Ginny, she seemed to have all this excitement bubbling up in her and she couldn't wait to let it out. And that's exactly what she did.

"Okay, everyone," she began. "I really do think we should discuss over this."

We were very lucky that no one but us was wandering around the Gryffindor Common Room, because if there had been students, eaves-dropping would be the last thing we needed.

"About what?" Ron asked his sister, bewildered. "Ginny, just look it over alright? After the little shock at Hogsmeade, we flew back to the forest, and luckily Filch was there in the front of the school grounds. I can't believe I'm actually thanking him, but you know, if it wasn't for him, we would probably be out in the cold until morning."

"Oh, don't you _think_ about anything, Ron?" she snapped. "And it wasn't a _'little shock at Hogsmeade', _either! Rosmerta died for our protection, and don't you think we should do something about it? I know we _were_ very lucky Filch was there, but what about the other teachers? Weren't they aware that Death Eaters were in the castle? And if they're not, aren't we going to have to tell them?"

"But Ginny," Neville started shyly. "What can we do about Rosmerta's death? She's...well...already gone. I don't think there is much more we can do."

Ginny pointed her index finger out, harshly about to state something, but a sigh was the only thing that left her and all of her thoughts just diminished. She sunk back into the couch next to me, and shook her head vigourously.

"You're right."

Harry, worried about how Ginny was feeling, shuffled in his seat and took his own turn to do the talking.

"Ginny, you are right about the teachers, however," he pointed out. "I'm sure that McGonagall might have heard the racket and all the students talking about it, do you think they know by now?"

"I don't know," she replied effortlessly. "I'm quite sure that she did hear about it, perhaps she even asked a couple of students, but they didn't know much. The only ones that had gone through most of it was us, of course, and we haven't told a soul what happened then. Do you reckon we ought to tell McGonagall?"

"We'll see," I said weakly. "If we do know for sure she hasn't heard about it yet - which I do find nearly impossible - we'll tell her privately. If she already does know, and it is necessary for her to know any further information in the event, then we'll explain everything."

"Fine with me," Ron murmured as he took a quick opportunity to yawn. It was Saturday, and for the first time in what seemed years all of us had finished our homework and we could just spend it like the happier days. I was growing impatient and I had to see Draco soon, but I fought against that fact and just decided to wait until I would run into him in the corridors. It had been a long time since I spent time with my fellow Gryffindors ever since I grew involved with Draco.

"Still, though," Ginny said, barely breaking the boundary of a whisper. "I feel so bad for Mandy's parents..."

No one seemed to understand what she was trying to say.

"Mandy?" I asked, try to poke out some information. "Mandy Brocklehurst? That girl in Ravenclaw?"

Ginny stared at all of us strangely, as if we've missed out on very important things.

"Haven't you heard? That night when the Death Eaters came into the castle, there was a Dark Mark above the school, don't you remember? Parvati was screaming terribly. Don't tell me you don't recall seeing it?"

I reduced my sleepy eyes to slits, thinking. Ron crossed his arms at Ginny with doubt, and Ginny merely furrowed her eyebrows at him.

"You're right," I replied. "I saw it when I was in the Common Room before I met Draco in the library."

Harry, Ron, and Neville exchanged looks.

"Yes, Mandy Brocklehurst was murdered," Ginny said, her voice quavering, guilt and pity written all over it. "Luna was waiting in front of the Fat Lady's Portrait Hole much earlier this morning, and when I opened it, she told me all there was to tell."

Everyone seemed to be uncomfortable, without any further questions to ask or answer. Harry stood up first, followed by Ginny, Ron, and Neville. I was last out of the Gryffindor Common Room, still slightly worried.

The school halls weren't as full as I had expected, for it was still relatively early and most students would spend their days in the Common Rooms. Just as we had descended down the Enchanted Stairway, a deadly-shocked Parvati Patil approached us, along with a worried Lavender Brown. I saw Ron flinch a little from the corner of my eye.

"Harry! What happened? With the Death Eaters, and the - " Parvati began.

"We don't know," Ginny inturrupted, looking slightly furious.

"Of course you don't, and - _what_?" Parvati, her face utterly puzzled, turned to look at Lavender and exchanged looks. "But last night! They broke into the castle, I remember...and I heard screaming, everyone in the girls dorm was going crazy, and -"

"Look, no offense or anything," Harry stepped in between them and descended his shoulders greatly. "But just drop it."

Parvati look horribly struck and Lavender crossed her arms, pouting at Harry. Harry raised his eyebrows back at the both of them. Ron even managed to shoot Lavender a look that would tell her to leave, and this seemed to shoot her straight at the spot, as she quickly tugged Parvati by her sleeve and vanished to the higher floor up above.

"Honestly," Ron muttered. "You think people couldn't be more nosy!"

"If those two are dying for answers," I recalled. "Then we might be facing a lot of students today desperate for an explanation. It would be better if we tell McGonagall first and follow her choice, and then see wether we tell them or not. Besdies, I don't want Harry retelling all these stories about the Death Eaters over and over again to the whole school."

Harry gave her a look of thanks and walked aside Ginny to the Great Hall, the rest of us following the two of them.

Inside the Great Hall, a few students were sitting around and eating Breakfast, talking with their friends (it was no question _what_ they were talking about) or just racing through their homework. We all sat down on Gryffindor table and took a bit of the toasted crumpets, pumpkin juice, eggs and apples. I immediately felt a great relief rush through my body as I satisfied my hunger.

"What do you guys want to do today?" Ron asked out of nowhere. "We've all got our homework finished, and there's not really anything we have to deal with today. Well, unless of course you count all the endless questions, but it's a Saturday."

Ginny twirled her fork in her eggs and took a bite out of green apple before flipping some of her hair over her shoulder. I knew that she was trying to get over the fact that Rosmerta died; she was doing quite well, but she wasn't in the best mood ever. Her fingers tapped on the hard, wooden surface of the table before I could tell an idea sparked in her mind once more.

"Harry," she called to him, as Harry instantly stopped drinking his Pumpkin Juice. "When's the last time we've spent some time together?"

"...I dunno," said Harry, looking a little guilty. He took another quick swig of Pumpkin Juice before resuming. "What are your plans for today?"

"Well, I don't really mind, what do you say for a walk by the lake?" Ginny suggested, spreading butter over her toasted crumpets. "The clouds will be clearing up soon."

Everyone turned to look at Harry as if they were waiting him to say something. Harry shrugged his shoulders again and grinned at Ginny.

"Sure. Why not?"

"Come on," Ginny rose up from her seat and took Harry by his hand. Harry stood up quickly and Ginny took him away in a flash. He waved a quick goodbye and before we knew it, he was gone. Oh, those two...

"What about you, Hermione?" Ron asked, and I felt a bit of shock. I knew he would ask. And I know what he was expecting for the answer.

"Well," I started casually. "I was actually hoping that all of us would be spending some quality time together, but Harry and Ginny left, and I don't know what plans you have in mind yet, so I was growing interest to spending some time with Draco. I want to make sure he's all right and I'm highly leaning toward the conclusion that he wants to talk to me as well."

I was expecting yet another annoying wave of jealousy to be fired at me, but Ron just stopped drinking his Pumpkin Juice and looked at me with an odd expression.

"All right, then," he arose, Neville trembling and following him shortly. "I'll catch you later. We'll just go hand with Seamus or something."

"Bye," I was now the only one left of us sitting at the table, and once I drank a little bit more juice, I sped out of the Great Hall and towards the courtyard, my spirits rising high.

Ginny was, indeed correct. The light grey clouds had cleared away and the sky was a blindingly bright but beautiful blue, and the sun was shining from up above. More students filled Hogwarts now that time had passed and although most of them still had sleep crawling upon their faces, some of them shot glances of wonder or curiosity as I passed by. The talk about the _'Missing' _signs from before must have still not faded away.

I walked around the grass and up to a tree, where I found Draco leaning on the other side of.

"Hermione," he said hurriedly, approaching me.

Without any further waiting, I jumped up and embraced him once more, and I could feel his long slender fingers on my back as he returned the hug gratefully. After the both of us pulled away, he brushed some of my bangs out of my face and tucked them behind my ear.

"You sleep all right?" he queried.

"I could've done with better, but I've been up longer than that," I said, not wanting him to worry. Then the question that I was burning to ask him finally let itself out easily. "Um...do you have any other plans for today?"

Draco took a while to think over his schedule but it was only shortly after that he smirked.

"Not particularly, no," he said, raising his shoulders a bit. "I got my wand back, by the way. What about yours?"

"Yes, all of ours were waiting in the Common Room, minus Ginny's, of course. I still wonder how they got there, I reckon the Death Eaters took them away with them."

"Last night when I was walking back to the Slytherin Common Room, I ran into Filch again. He said they were kept in a storage room in the Astronomy Tower, he doesn't know how they got there, and that's that."

"Oh."

"What about you, are you busy?"

"No, I'm free. What about you, are you sure you don't have anything else to do?"

"Yes."

"No homework? No anything?"

"..._Well_, I do have some homework, but I don't think it would be that necessary to complete it today."

He seemed to detect the familiar _you-should-finish-it _look on my face, and tried to sort it all out without saying anything. I just looked at there, smiling at him, testing to see wether he knew a way to finish his homework and spend some time with me. Draco crossed his arms and as with all of his thinking, he began speaking once more.

"Tell you what, after we hang for a while, I'll finish it before I go to bed," Draco pointed out, sounding as casual as ever. "That tickle your fancy?"

I nodded excitedly and placed my hands in my pockets, blushing a bit for I knew some people around us were watching. And I can't believe I looked at my feet when he wasn't talking, I should have been used to this _ages_ ago by now!

"Where's Potter and all them?"

"They set off a while ago."

"Where do you want to go, Hermione?"

"...Well, um, I don't know...any particular place you want to be at?"

"I don't want to choose a place you wouldn't want to be at, wouldn't I?"

"Draco, I really don't mind where we -"

"Come on. Just tell me."

He took my hand in his and we started walking a couple of feet away from the tree. I know that from just looking in his pale gray eyes, he was reading my mind. He knew exactly where I wanted to be at, and we had the perfect oppurtunity. Draco chuckled as he waited for me to speak up and tell him where I desired to be located.

"Well," I stated. "There is _one_ place..."

_

* * *

Narration

* * *

_

Yet again Hermione experienced the excitement bubbling up inside her as the same, flashing light appeared before them and the boundaries of Hogwarts Grounds melted away. Before, this was where Draco had wanted them to be, and it was now Hermione's turn. She took her time to breathe in the familiar scent and feel the familiar wind, as she removed her shoes to allow her feet to sink into the sand once more.

"The ocean," she said. "I've missed this place."

It was in fact the very same place Draco had taken her previously, and she approached the shore, just in front of where the waves could reach. Draco followed her and the both of them sat down aside each other, the ocean's surface glistening with the light of the sun as the big blue seemed to be stretching out for miles and miles. Hermione ran her fingers through the sand and watch the tiny grains slide through her fingers, escaping.

"I knew this was the place for you," Draco said, laughing in between. "I've recognized that look on your face."

Hermione laughed a little, yawned and let her body collapse on the sand, her face facing the blue sky. She inhaled the salty ocean air and then shot straight back up, eager to converse something over with Draco.

"Do you remember how we used to act towards each other?" she asked very suddenly. A grin was still dominant on her face as she tried to remember all their past quarrels and rows. As much as she loved the way they were in the present, she did miss their childish prattling a little. "We were so busy plotting things against each other, weren't we?"

"Plotting things?" Draco asked, perplexed. "Like what?"

"I don't know, maybe it's just me. But all the names we used to call each other, it seems very far away now," Hermione tittered, not exactly knowing why she was bringing this up now out of all moments they had the time to discuss something like this.

"Filthy little Mudblood," Draco said jokingly.

"Twitchy little ferret," Hermione shot back as the both of them laughed.

"I've used that name too frequently ever since our second year, haven't I?" he thought, sulking backwards and rolling up his sleevesa little. "I should've thought of something new every once in a while, using the same old insult grew rather boring."

A silence hovered over them for a while as they listened to the calming noises of the ocean's shore, a few seagulls calling out beyond them, and the slow reappearance of clouds in the sky as they drifted over their smooth blue surface. Hermione sat up not too long after and made her way to the wet sand, her toes feeling the ticklish sensation as the water crept under and around her feet.

Hermione's laughing tore the silence apart, and Draco snapped out of his sleepy trance and shot straight up to see her swaying in the wind.

Remaining where he was, sitting on the golden sand, Draco decided to just watch her as she walked along the rugged shore, laughing her heart out. She wa fascinated with every move she made, and every move the ocean made following her own. The wind grew stronger and the waves increased in size and strength, as Hermione ran away from the rush of water, giggling as she made her way up to him.

"What's the matter, Draco? Why are you just sitting there."

He cocked his head to the side, wondering.

"Don't worry about it, I'm fine here."

"Oh, and I forgot to ask," Hermione bent down and sat next to him once more, exactly where she had last time. "Do you think it'll be the right thing if we tell McGonagall or a teacher about last night's incidents? I do think they have a right to know, but I'm going to ask you first for your father's sake."

"My father shouldn't deserve such mercy any longer," Draco said calmly, still polite enough to keep Hermione in a steady mood. "After what he's done, I think we should tell them. I don't know if they're going to catch him, but I have to do something about it.

"Don't be silly, you can't do it all on your own," Hermione insisted, her chin resting on one of his shoulders. "We're here to help you, Harry, Ron and I. I know for a fact they're still not as fond of you as I am, but it couldn't hurt, right?"

"Listen, Hermione. I know it's very nice of you to volunteer to help, but I just can't risk the chances of your death if we encounter the Death Eaters again. Who knows, it might be our last meeting with them, it might not, but I have to do something about my father's doings. I can't keep allowing him to bring you into this to lure me into a situation, it's simply unforigvable."

"Yes, yes, I know how you feel, Draco...but wether you think you're risking my life or not, I'm still all right, aren't I? Sure, I might not be able to do something about your father, I'll leave that to you, but just consider thinking about letting me accompany you."

"That's fine."

Hermione leaned away from Draco and she sighed.

"...Well, we'll have plenty of time to discuss that later. Let's go back to Hogwarts and meet up with everyone, perhaps tell McGonagall or something."

Draco nodded, helping her up, as he pulled his wand out of his pockets and they Apprated back to the boundaries of Hogwarts Grounds once more.

Arriving back at the school and back into the Great Hall, they were surprised to see it packed with students that seemed like they had just woken up. Some of their faces were still drowsy as most would prefer to wake up late, hence the feeling of laziness that stuck to them afterwards. Hermione stood on her tiptoes to look over the crowd of boys and girls. Harry, Ron, Neville, and Ginny all seemed to be present on the table of the Great Hall.

"I'll catch with you later," Draco said, patting her on the shoulder. "I haven't eaten yet."

"Okay, goodbye!"

Draco made his way to the side opposite of wherehe usually satfor it wasn't as crowded on the Slytherin Table there.Makingherway towards the Gryffindors, Ginny stepped out of her seat to talk to Demelza on the other end.

"Hi Hermione," Harry greeted. "How'd it go for you?"

"Good,"she replied, taking my seat. "What happened between you and Ginny?"

"...She talked to me about various things, and after that we just sat by the lake for a while. Nothing big."

"Yeah, right," Ron grumbled. "They even started snogging after that!"

"How would you know, Ron?"Hermione questioned, still recalling the insane jealousy that was sheltered inside him for many years now.

"Ron, Neville, Seamus and Dean ran into us shortly," Harry laughed it off, blushing a little. "But other than that, today's going by okay."

Hermione reached for a cup of Pumpkin Juice and she once again drummed her fingers on the wooden surface, thinking over things. When would be the right time for McGonagall to know?

Ginny, arriving back from her quick conversation with Demelza, sat next to Harry and turned to face Hermione.

"Where have you been, Hermione?" she questioned, desperate to know.

Hermione's heart was racing, she knew that Ginny was one of the only people she told about the series of Death Eater encounters, but she completely skipped the chapter when Draco had taken her to the ocean for the first time. She didn't know if it was the best descision to keep it a secret to someone as close a friend as Ginny.

"I'll tell you later, Ginny," Hermione said suspiciously. She could see Ron's face redden.

Ginny laughed, catching Hermione's clue. "Okay, that's fine."

"...When are we going to tell McGonagall? I thought we were goingto tell her today...?"

"Oh, yes, we were just about to," Harry implied. "She's still in the Transfigurationclassroom, we were just waiting for you to come back. What about...erm..._Malfoy_?Is he coming?"

Itdidn't take Hermione long to answer his question, for she arose from her seat and made her way to the opposite side of the Slytherin Table, where Draco was deep in conversation with Theodore Nott. Some of the Slytherins, such sa Pansy Parkinson and Daphne Greengrass, turned to look at her, but Draco quickly stood up and followed her back to the Gryffindor Table. A few Gryffindors looked around for the answer on why Draco was accompanying them, but Draco refused to sit down.

"So, should we make our way to the Transfiguration classroom now?" he asked.

Hermione nodded and Harry, Ron, Ginny and Neville followed them out the Great Hall. Their lot got a few stares in the corridors as everyone thought them to be an unlikely bunch of students walking together.

Once standing in front of the Transfiguration classroom door, Hermione pulled it open quietly, not wanting to disturb their teacher.

"Professor McGonagall?" she called out.

Professor McGonagall was jotting a few sentences down on her spare bit of parchment when she rose her head to look at them, her glasses residing in between both of her cat-like eyes. Her face was firm and it seemed she was expecting their arrival.

"What is it, Miss Granger?" She folded her piece of parchment in half and closed her ink bottle, laying her quill next to the pile of papers to grade.

"Well, I was - _we_ - were wondering," all the students stepped in and gathered around her desk, looking troubled. "If you were present at the time the Death Eaters were located inside the castle?"

Ginny twitched a little.

"Argus had told me about it," McGonagall replied with a deep voice. "But I'm sorry, Miss Granger, I was in the classroom most of the night finishing some grades, and I don't recall hearing any sounds from below."

"...But the other teachers," Harry piped up. "Didn't they suspect anything? What about Flitwick? The Death Eaters passed his classroom when we were running from there."

"Filius left after dinner yesterday for the weekend, I suppose he will be returning tomorrow," she took off her reading glasses to look at them firmly with her eyes. "I will ask around the castle once I am finished with grading."

"...Professor," Neville spoke out feebly. "What are we going to do - about the Death Eaters? And Professor Snape? He hasn't been here in a while."

"I'm afraid there is nothing we can do about Severus," she replied idly. "The Ministry and the school has lost contact with him, I am afraid he has left the school."

"Left the school? But what will happen to Potions class?" Hermione asked, worried.

"We'll see what we can do about it," McGonagall groaned idly. "And as for the Death Eaters, the Ministryand - the Order - are still on the search for them. We've asked Narcissa Malfoy a few questions, and several other people the live within the area, but it hasn't been much of a help."

"You've talked to my mother?" Draco sneered. "What did she say?"

"She's been wondering what you and your father have been up to," Professor McGonagall said flatly. "Now, she well knows that you do not remain faithul to the Dark Lord, but with your father - she's quite worried about your safety."

Harry, Ron, Hermione, Draco, Neville, and Ginny looked around at each other with puzzled emotion and wonder. No one seemed to have anything else to ask, so they waited for none other than Hermione to talk next.

"That's all we needed, Professor," Hermione said in word of thanks. "Sorry we troubled you."

"I appreciate it, Miss Granger. I assure you, if I discover any further information about this event, I'll let you lot now. Off you go then."

They all made their way out of the Transfiguration classroom and all out into the courtyard again. As much as Hermione and Draco were worried about the situations at hand, they agreed to let it all out of their hands and spend this temporary relief in the best way possible with one another.

"I told you I would get you out of this, at least for now," Draco whispered in her ear when no one laid eyes on them. "But just watch. I'm not going to cheat."

**

* * *

**

**So...hmm...fluff! Yeah, I thought it would be nice to fit some more lovin' in there, there has been a lot of drama and action lately. There's another chapter done and finished. Although all those author notes might change your mind on how the story will go, please, please don't leave me, lol. XD I write fanfiction to see if people will like my writing and it makes me very, very happy to see you guys waiting for me to get off my butt with another update. This IS my very first DracoHermione fic, after all.**

**Anyway, please review and I do hope to get 200+ reviews soon, and if I'm lucky, maybe before my next update. Who knows? Thanks for reading my annoying author's notes and my story this far and I'll catch you guys soon!**

**(And guess what? Next chapter, we're going to lay off all the crisis for a while and have some fun. I'll bring you Valentine's Day! Sound good? Yes? No?)**


	27. Her Unpromising Wonder

**Thanks for all the lovely reviews and 20,000+ hits!Yeah, so I didn't manage to reach over 200 before this update, but I didn't really see that happening anyway. I'm glad you guys understand what I meant to show through my author's notes last chapter. I've read all your recommendations through your reviews and e-mails and kept it in thought, and so, I bring you another new chapter: Valentine's Day. I've been waiting to write this chapter for a long time now, so I had a lot of fun with this one. And it's going to be a very long one too. :)**

**Of course I'm not going to run away from all the trouble permanently, but...yeah. I won't forget about it completely, I have future plans, just read along and don't worry. The entire chapter is told in 3rd person. I promise to have Draco tell the story soon because the Narration and Hermione's point of view seems to be taking up most of it. Hope you enjoy!

* * *

**

The sky of mid-February was a pearly gray, as white as a pale spring's dawn. A sleepy day awaited the students as they awoke in their Dormitories, yawning, ready for the day they have been expecting ever since the beginning of the month. The girls were especially eager; the majority of them wore red, flushed cheeks and squealed with delight, hardly being able to contain all their excitement inside them.

Ginny Weasley arose from her bed, opening a nearby window and sighed as she felt the cold wind dance across her face. She pulled the curtains in front of the open window so it wouldn't grow too chilly into the Girl's Dormitory, and made her way toward Hermione's bed.

She was still asleep, her breathing steady, her body toasty and comfortable under her blankets. An opened, thick book with yellowed pages laid beside her, almost to the very edge of the bed.

Not wanting to wait for her friend's awakening any longer, Ginny tapped her on the shoulder softly, which, to her surprise, awoke her immediately.

"What? What is it - Oh," Hermione spoke out unbelievably quickly. "Ginny. Good morning."

"Good morning," Ginny said back, backing away from her bed and brushing her hair in front of a mirror, and placing on her socks afterwards. She hummed to herself as Hermione changed into her school uniform, brushing away her bushy hair from her shoulders. Hermione yawned vigorously as she closed her book, placed it in her schoolbag, and folded her bedsheets.

"What's the deal, Ginny? Why'd you wake me?" Hermione said, rubbing sleep out of her eyes. "Breakfast doesn't start in a while. What's the hurry?"

Ginny tucked several strands of hair behind her ear before tying it into a high ponytail. She turned to look at Hermione dubiously, who raised an eyebrow after being flashed the look.

"Have you completely forgotten?" Ginny questioned, crossing her arms and leaning against a wall. "It's February 14th! Valentine's Day."

"...Oh!" Hermione gasped, her shoulders shooting straight up. Her drowsiness instantly faded away as it was quickly replaced with that of guilt and worry. She sulked back on top of her bed, ruffling the bedsheets once again. She _had_ completely forgotten. "...Oh no."

"What's wrong, Hermione?"

"Ginny...I...I didn't make any valentines at all!"

Ginny shuddered a little, her eyes blinking countless times. She accompanied Hermione and sat next to her on the bed, the matress sinking from their combined weight.

"Don't worry, Hermione," she said sweetly, patting her shoulder. "It's just one day. You'll survive."

"...But...no...what will Draco _think_ of me? I've been spending too much time reading when instead I should have been making valentines! And Harry and Ron...I don't have valentines for them _either_...I'm sorry, Ginny, but I'm afraid that -"

" - Hermione," Ginny cut in. "It's_ fine_. I'm sure they'll understand."

Hermione appreciated the fact that Ginny was trying to soothe her and pull her away from her feelings of embarassment, but inside she knew that living through the day wasn't going to be easy. How was she supposed to accept people's Valentine's and give none in return? Would they think she was that selfish?

"Come on. Let's join everyone down in the Great Hall."

With no other choice, Hermione followed Ginny. The Common Room downstairs was undecorated and completely empty, and not even a sound from the Boys Dormitory was to be heard. They both assumed all the students were in the corridors or in the Great Hall eating breakfast, so they exited through the Portrait Hole shortly, descending down the Enchanted Stairway.

In the corridors, a cluster of students, mostly girls, flooded the walkways and carried bright red and pink envelopes. A Ravenclaw girl walked around with a giant Chocolate Cauldron, tied with a pink bow, resting in her arms. Chocolates, cards, ribbons, and pink streamers couldn't be missed within an eye's blink as Hermione and Ginny walked by them, staring nervously. Several, present-strewn Ravenclaw girls chased after a handsome boy of Hufflepuff and a couple appeared to be snogging against a nearby wall. Ginny scrunched her nose at them.

Among the crowd of students emerged a lovestruck Neville, carrying three Valentine cards in his left hand.

"Hi, Hermione, Ginny," he said cheerfully, handing out two cards. "These are for you."

Ginny accepted it kindly and took it, while Hermione let her hand out feebly and grasped it in her hand. The entire card was deep red with white handwriting. On the cover, a small lollipop was attached. The both of them opened it slowly, and inside, the words etched inside it read '_Happy Valentine's Day. From, Neville'_. Ginny gave him a quick smile and Neville smiled back, but tugged on her sleeve to ensure that he was not finished. Hermione looked at her feet.

"Yes?" Ginny asked. "What is it?"

Neville fiddled with his fingers shyly, but still managed to look Ginny straight in the eye.

"Do you...urm..." he began. "D-do you know w-where L-Luna is?"

Hermione could not help but smile. Ginny grinned widely and chuckled, Neville turning a very fair shade of pink. She elbowed him softly in a friendly way and continued to speak.

"She's usually wandering by the halls near Ravenclaw Tower."

"Oh...um, okay, thanks," Neville said hurriedly, taking a headstart as he sped through the crowds of girls, looking happier than Hermione and Ginny had ever seen him.

"So it seems someone's happy," Ginny said to herself in between her laughter before turning to Hermione. "But you. Come on Hermione, ease up a bit! If you can accept one card from someone and not return it you could at least deal with a few more!"

Hermione winced at the thought and held on to Neville's card. Maybe Ginny was right.

"...Maybe," she said weakly. "I'll see."

Walking under the large doors of the Great Hall, Hermione looked around at the long tables. Crimson and pink boxes of candies laid everywhere, red roses were placed on the tables, and the usual goblets of Pumpkin Juice were no where to be seen. The large room smelled of chocolate and flowers, and a groups of girls approached Ginny, showering her with Valentine's presents. Hermione avoided them and pranced her way to the Gryffindor table, where Harry and Ron awaited her.

Ron had recieved a large pink box of chocolates from none other than Lavender Brown. He grimaced at the frilly pink container, tossing it aside the table shortly. Harry sat in his usual seat, popping a few of Ron's chocolates in his mouth. _Maybe_, Hermione thought. _Maybe I'm not the only one lacking a few Valentines..._

As much as she wanted to spend a few seconds to glance over at the Slytherin Table, Hermione resisted. Draco could be staring at her, waiting for a gift exchange, so she didn't turn her head once. She took her seat sluggishly, trying to avoid any eye contact with any of her friends whatsover. She took out her book, trying to look as casual as possible.

But Ron was smarter that she had thought.

"What's wrong, 'Mione?" he asked, lowering his head to try to catch the look on her face which was currently covered from her bushy bangs. Hermione turned her head away to avoid him. Harry, after swallowing one last chocolate cauldron, joined Ron in questioning Hermione. Hermione didn't like this at all.

"It's...nothing," she said fiercely. "Really." She brushed the bangs out of her face and tried to hide her feelings of frustration with a quick smile, which worked quite well for those like Harry and Ron. Harry dug into his pocket and Hermione stared at him.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Hermione," he handed her a deep red piece of paper with an enchanted moving picture tied to it with red ribbons. Hermione looked at the picture and smiled - it was a picture they took a long, long time ago, the three at them during their first year at Hogwarts. She could feel her heart sink from all the memories she missed so much and smiled at Harry, laughing.

"Thanks," she said, feeling slightly relieved now. Maybe she didn't have to worry about this, like Ginny said - after all, it was _just_ Valentine's Day.

It seemed that Ron had forgotten about Valentine's Day as well, seeing as that he didn't have any gifts to return to those he had recieved from. Hermione felt a great rush of thanks as she turned to look at Ginny, who beamed at the sight of Hermione careless once more.

But even if she wasn't looking, she could just feel Draco's eyes laid on her attentively, waiting for her to speak to him. She couldn't find the courage to do so. Instead, she buried her face in her hands sheepishly, and she couldn't care less when she was aware that Harry, Ron, and Ginny were staring at her. She heard Ginny arose from her seat and walk to where Hermione was sitting, and sat next to her.

"Are you okay, Hermione?"

Hermione's head shot up like nothing had ever happened. She turned away from Harry and Ron, as if nothing had ever happened. She crossed her arms and faced Ginny, locking glances with her.

"Listen, Ginny...I really don't know what's gotten into me today. Maybe I just have to talk things over with someone for a while. I don't know, I feel like I need to loosen up a bit." she said truthfully, shrugging her shoulders and crossing her legs.

Ginny looked at her blankly, but it wasn't too long until she sparked with a new idea.

"That's exactly what you need, Hermione."

"What is?"

"You need to talk to someone."

"...Well, I know _that_, but -"

Ginny tugged Hermione so fiercely that she was sent straight of her seat. Hermione managed to keep her balance and stand straight until Ginny gently pushed her to the Slytherin Table where Hermione had no choice but to remain. She would've just walked back to the Gryffindor Table and remain there, but Ginny would have just brought her back anyway.

A couple of Slytherin girls, such as Daphne Greengrass, Millicent Bulstrode and Pansy Parkinson, all gaped at her, wondering what a _Gryffindor_ would be doing around the likes of them. Hermione did her own fair share of staring back at them - Daphne had brand-new bright pink ribbons for her hair, Millicent sat there grumpily, and Pansy seemed to be arranging some flowers in a bouquet. Miles Bletchley looked at her questionably.

Hermione's shadow was now looming over Draco's back, who seemed to be dead asleep, his head on top of the table. Theodore Nott elbowed him, but Draco didn't nudge a bit. Knowing that no one else was going to even bother to try, Pansy shook him on the shoulder until Draco's white-blonde head shot up, looking around.

"...Pansy, what was that - "

Pansy didn't even bother answering; she instead snapped him out of his gaze and pointed behind him, obviously annoyed. Draco turned around and looked at Hermione.

"Hermione."

She hid one foot behind the other and shifted her weight from the left and right, placing her hands behind her back nervously. Hermione tried to give him a quick smile, but from the other side of the table Millicent looked at her, disgusted.

"Um...Draco, can we talk?"

Draco looked at her questionably and then rose from his seat, nodding slowly. He took her hand instantly and Hermione held it back, the both of them making their way out of the Great Hall. Before they were out of range within the Slytherin Table, Hermione heard what seemed to be Daphne Greengass saying, "You were _right_, Pansy...she did change him!"

Hermione ignored that last comment and instead tried to keep calm, and before she left the Great Hall she took a quick a glance at the Gryffindor Table. Ginny smiled at her deviously while Ron rolled his eyes. Harry didn't seem to care less, and instead returned to his decent conversation with Ginny, the both of them thoroughly absorbed in the subject.

The both of them made their way out of the corridors and onto school grounds, finding an empty patch of grass to sit on. And just when Hermione thought this couldn't get any more quieter, Draco was the first to speak.

"What's this all about?" he asked her, sort of worried. He rested his hand on one of her shoulders.

"...I really don't know. I needed to talk to someone, and Ginny recommended this, so I guess this is where it all ends to. I don't know, Draco, I'm not myself today."

"Valentine's Day got you all hyped up?"

Hermione flinched and didn't answer. Instead she returned a guilty look and Draco and just looked at the sky, sighing deeply.

"Well, don't worry, I know what you mean," Draco stood up and held out his hand, allowing Hermione to take it. He helped her up and the both of them stood there without further speaking for what seemed to be, in Hermione's point of view, _ages_.

"There's something I feel like I need to tell you," Draco said, and Hermione couldn't help but notice that he had grown slightly nervous.

From then on, a thousand thoughts rushed to her head. Was this the right moment to tell Draco that she didn't have any gift to return? Should she wait after until he was done speaking? Or should she just avoid even mentioning it around him to let him forget about it? As much as the possibilites were endless, Hermione explored all the thoughts and couldn't find anything that she found suitable.

"Well, you see," Draco continued.

Hermione turned her head away from him and blurted it out, she couldn't control herself.

"I'm sorry."

But something was different. She had expected an odd silence to float upon them afterwards, but there was a little extra added to the thought. Draco had spoken the exact same words in sync to Hermione's, and she looked at him dubiously. Draco seemed to not understand what was going on in Hermione's world, either.

"What are..._you_ sorry for?" Hermione asked hesitatingly. Draco gave up.

"I didn't get you a Valentine of any sort, I didn't have the least bit of time," he said, and Hermione caught a glimpse of him blushing. She laughed a little. "What's so funny?"

Hermione looked down at her feet but continued to chuckle to herself, shortly looking back up at him afterwards. He looked at her with doubt.

"Oh, this is ridiculous," she said once her laughter had faded away, a permanent feeling of accomplishment still dwelling inside her. "We're just overreacting. Come on, let's get back inside. Class will start."

Hermione took his hand and Draco followed her, looking dumbfounded.

"Why'd you apologize?" he mumbled, raising an eyebrow.

She didn't even have to turn around to look at him directly to let him know what she had been dying to say. Hermione kept her eyes fixes foward as the both of them headed inside the castle and into the corridors.

"Oh, dear Draco. The same reason you did."

Before the both of them had arrived back inside the Great Hall, in which currently students were making their way out of, Hermione had asked him what class he would be attending. They both happened to have a review session of Charms first thing, so they managed to slip through the crowds of students and walk down the Charms Corridor.

"Say, Hermione," Draco began, since the Charms Corridor seemed to be deserted at the moment. "What do you plan to do after Hogwarts?"

Hermione thought over it, and although she found this a little random, didn't hesitate to continue.

"Well, I guess, perhaps, I can take S.P.E.W. a little further," she remarked matter-of-factly. "That would be nice."

"Spew? What in Merlin's name is - "

"It's not _spew_," Hermione pointed out, recollecting on how she reacted to this on times with Ron. "It's the Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare and - "

"Oh," Draco said quietly. "That thing for the House Elves?"

Hermione nodded and they had arrived the Charms classroom, opened the door, and took their seats. Hermione was placed on the opposite side of the room of where Draco was, and took her seat next to Luna Lovegood, who seemed to be staring at a deep red card very dreamily. She swung her radish earrings back and forth, and twirled her wand in her hair.

"Hello, Luna," Hermione said kindly, placing her books on her desk. "What's that - ...Oh."

She leaned over to see that Luna was gazing down at a card from Neville, and she seemed to be singing to herself.

"It's from Neville," she said in a sing-song voice. "I do think its rather nice of him. This was the only Valentine I've recieved today."

Hermione smiled at her weakly and took out her quill and a piece of parchment. Her eyes darted to the chalkboard, and in Professor Flitwick's majestic handwriting, had specifically instructed them to write an essay about what they have reviewed so far and what there is to know for their N.E.W.T. standards. Hermione groaned as she already knew all this, and her quill moved faster than anyone elses in the room.

Filius Flitwick just remained squat in his desk, grading a few papers. He had returned a couple of days ago from finishing his errands in the words of McGonagall. Luna hadn't even started her essay, for she seemed to be playing with the lollipop wrapper which was attached to Neville's card. The end of Hermione's parchment was already trailing off the end of the table, but she wasn't quite finished yet.

After class was halfway finished, Hermione took a good look around. Harry seemed to be straining as he couldn't think of anything to write next, Ron was on the verge of falling asleep, Neville kept taking quick glances at Luna (immediately looking away when she turned back), and Seamus and Dean were far too busy talking about what seemed to be related to end of the year plans. Her eyes traveled from her side of the room and to Draco's desk.

Pansy, whose seat was assigned next to Draco, had her face turn to a shade of soft pink and her hands flustering as she hesitated to give him a Valentine's card, shortly throwing it into her schoolbag once she peceived that she didn't want to. A very gloomy Draco stared down at his piece of paper lazily, praying for another dull session of Charms to end in an instant.

When Charms was about a minute before ending, and when most students seemed to be waiting for it, Professor Flitwick gathered all the students' attention.

"If you haven't finished your essay, I would like it to be finished, and that is your homework assignment as of today," he concluded. "For tomorrow's lesson we will be reviewing the terms required to be known for your N.E.W.T.s. Class dismissed."

All the students filed out of the classroom. Luna pranced out of it first, as happy as ever, while Harry and Ron had left Hermione. She placed all her books back into her bag, and it took her quite a while to let the ink from her essay dry before she rolled up her parchment, slipping it back into her schoolbag. Seamus and Dean, other than Hermione, were the last out of the classroom.

Once Hermione had strutted out of the classroom, she was met face-to-face with Draco, nearly crashing into him.

"Oh, hi," she continued walking and he walked beside her, as she made her way to Herbology.

"Finish your essay?" he asked, trying to bring up something she would find interesting.

"Oh no, I'm not nearly finished."

Draco looked at her, gobsmacked.

"Are you serious? I saw your essay back there at Charms - almost as long as the bloody desk!"

Hermione laughed and shrugged her shoulders, for she never knew what to say whenever someone placed a comment on her lengthy pieces of work.

"Do you think," he started. "You can help me with mine?"

She cocked her head to the side a little as they made their way of the Charms Corridor.

"No, I don't think so," she said teasingly. "It's for your own good, you wouldn't want to fail on your N.E.W.T., wouldn't you?"

"Damn," Draco said in an undertone, laying it off.

"Anyway," Hermione and Draco had stopped dead in their tracks in the middle of a corridor. "Where are you headed next?"

It took Draco a while to respond as he thought over his schedule. He sighed with great disgust.

"History of Magic. I'll catch you during lunch."

"Okay, goodbye."

"Bye."

They both went their seperate ways as Hermione walked towards the Greenhouses outside, and Draco towards the first floor - no, he was definitely not looking foward to another dull lecture from the monotonous ghost, Professor Binns. He already had an essay for Charms to finish and he certainly didn't need any more homework to complete.

Entering the doors of the History of Magic classroom, Draco was growing rather annoyed with the constant giggling of Slytherin girls behind him, and as well as the overdose of pink decorations (he was reminded suddenly of Professor Umbridge's office). Two unfamiliar girls had approached him, attempting to hand him some of their frilly Valentine's cards, but Draco merely glowered at them, making his way back to his desk.

History of Magic was one of those classes where Draco didn't have to deal with the persistent troubles of Pansy, so a wave of appeasement overcame him when he was seated on his desk. No one was assigned to sit next to him, for Draco's desk was placed there for extra room. He didn't even bother taking a look at the chalkboard, for their lesson was always about giant wars and the such, so he slumped back in his chair and gazed around the room in pure boredom.

When Professor Binns' routine voice announced that class had started, everyone mumbled among themselves and slammed their books on their desk furiously. All of his lessons seemed to grow fairly old and there was no further use in studying over the same concepts over and over again. Draco refused to pull his textbook out as he sat back in his chair comfortably, staring out a nearby window. The weather was still very dull like an average Hogwarts February.

This was the perfect time to think over things. Especially Draco's main question that lingered in his mind for many days now - how was we going to deal with his father's unwise actions? He didn't want to risk getting sent to Azkaban if he decided to do something that might consider that alternate choice, he had to find a way to persuade him to stop. Draco didn't want his mother being involved with any of this as well, for he already had lost his father's trust and he wouldn't wish for any further quarrels with his own mother.

There was also for Hermione's sake. With each horrifying thought and with each question without an answer, Draco rested his head in his hand as he stared gloomily towards the front of the classroom. He knew he would doze off completely soon, but if it wasn't for the little crumpled piece of paper that had hit it head suddenly, he would already be asleep.

_What in Merlin's name is this?_ Draco thought as he slowly unfolded the note. It read:

_Daphne says there's a party in the Slytherin Common Room later._

He didn't have to ask who had thrown it to him in the first place. The messy and slightly indistinct handwriting belonged to no other than Miles Bletchley. When Draco turned to look at him with a small glare, Miles merely looked at him the same way, as if he had no notification about the party either. Draco's stare ran off to Daphne, but he didn't get any attention back, for she was blinking helplessly at the chalkboard.

Draco's eyes then hovered over where Professor Binns was, and he seemed to be writing something rather long on the chalkboard. Draco leaned his body to the side and Miles did the same as they had a quick whispering session.

"There's nothing special to have a bloody party about, isn't there?"

"Malfoy, I reckon it's all the plans of the girls...for Valentine's day."

Draco let out a wearisome sigh, rolling his eyes exhaustingly. Miles continued to whisper.

"So do think you'll be attending?"

"Don't know. Greengrass has been getting on my nerves lately."

"What about Pansy?"

"Oh, her? Well, I don't think I have a reason to accuse her of anything since she's too damn frightened to speak to me."

"She really does want you to go, you know."

"...Maybe. I have an essay to finish."

Draco returned to his original position, but Miles remained, staring at him, plainly astounded.

"Since when did you care about homework?" he barely broke the boundary of a whisper. "Let me guess. It's Granger, isn't it? She's convinced you into doing all your assignments, hasn't she? Or are you doing this all to impress her?"

He grew angry rather fast and as much and Draco found it rather hard to control the rage burning deep within him.

"Drop it, Bletchley."

Miles didn't speak another word to Draco and he sat back straight on his desk, muttering miscellaneous complaints about History of Magic under his breath. Draco tried whatever he could to catch Daphne's attention and ask her about the party, but he didn't dare trying to fire a quick hex with Professor Binns staring around the class. He gave up and let it slide off his thoughts, who cared about a stupid party anyway...

When History of Magic had finally ended, Lunch was now being served down at the Great Hall. Draco began to walk his way out of the door when Daphne had stopped him, her perky pigtails bouncing up and down. Draco hated it.

"Are you coming to the party?"

He flashed her a look of stupidity.

"Well, Greengrass, I don't really have a choice, do I? Considering you and your prancing little friends decided to host it in the Slytherin Common Room. What the hell are you throwing a party for anyway?"

"...I dunno, just means of celebration. Come _on_, Draco, it's Valentine's day."

"I really could care less about it."

Daphne looked like she had been slapped in the face as Draco just strode away from her, walking towards the Great Hall. Most of the students were already seated on their tables which currently housed various sandwiches and fruits. Draco was not hungry at all, but he did find this loads better than waiting for a class to pass.

Hermione approached him shortly.

"Hello, Draco," she greeted. "How was History of Magic?"

"Absolutely useless," he replied, taking in yet another deep breath. "Listen, Hermione, I have something to tell you."

"Well, so do I."

"...You go first this time."

"If you say so. Well, apparently Lavender, Parvati and Ginny planned a Valentines Party later on in the Gryffindor Common Room, so the chances of us spending any further time together this evening are very slim. I think it'll hurt Ginny's feelings if I don't go."

"There's a party at my place as well, and I must say, I really couldn't care less. And as for Weaselette, isn't she aware that you can spend your own free time however you want to?"

"I do know she does, but I haven't been spending much time with her lately. Do you think it's possible we can both go to our parties and meet each other later?"

"...I think I have something in mind. Why don't you leave your Common Room around eight thirty and meet me by the dungeons?"

"Maybe. I think I will be able to arrange."

"Oh, and don't show your face until we're inside. I know that the party might get rather wild and out of control for anyone to notice that you've entered, but if anyone catches you in the Slytherin Common Room, especially _Pansy_, I don't know how they'll come off on me."

"Okay. I'll see you later."

Draco and Hermione proceeded to their tables, and once Hermione was seated, Ginny noticed something.

"Hermione? You look very happy. What is it?"

"Even I don't know." she tittered slightly before taking a bite out of her sandwich.

Throughout the rest of the day, the flood of Valentines Cards and pink streamers seemed to tone out greatly once everyone seemed to be finished passing out cards and the such. After a small dinner Hermione joined her fellow Gryffindors in the Common Room, not knowing what she was supposed to do at the party anyway.

Harry and Ron were drinking several glasses of Butterbeer as they talked to Seamus and Dean, who seemed to sneak a bottle of Firewhisky. Neville joined them shortly after his condition improved, for he had drunk over five glasses of Butterbeer due to a dare. Ginny, Lavender and Parvati found Hermione sitting alone on a chair and rushed over to her.

"Come _on_, Hermione," Lavender nagged. "You've been out of it all day!"

"Say, why don't we have a nice, decent conversation?" Parvati insisted, pulling up a few chairs for all of them.

"I guess it wouldn't hurt," Hermione said sarcastically, seeing as that she immediately knew where this conversation was going to lead to. She crossed her legs and her arms and looked at them.

"Let's talk about your love life," Lavender giggled, the tone of her laugh reaching over the line greatly. Ginny widened her eyes at her.

"My love life?" Hermione looked at her coldly.

"Oh, come on, you saw it coming," Parvati piped up. "Why don't you tell us about how you and Malfoy are going?"

"I don't believe there is anything to tell that others should hear," she trailed off, looking at Ginny. "I guess I can tell Ginny everything, considering I _do_ trust her, and she hasn't spilled a secret ever since - " Ginny smiled - "and I'm afraid I cannot tell Harry and Ron any further details about it either.

"If you can tell Ginny, you can tell us," Lavender spoke out, and began to beg.

"No, I think not," she shot back at her. "You two have been nagging me about it for days now."

Parvati and Lavender looked at her reproachfully as they both left with a quick '_hmph_', joining the other Gryffindor girls. Ginny brought her chair closer to Hermione.

"Yeah, they get really annoying sometimes, you just have to deal with it."

Hermione couldn't agree more and she stared blankly at the dancing fire, suddenly remembering her future plans.

"Oh, um, Ginny...what time is it?"

Ginny brought out her wrist from her robes and stared at her watch.

"It's 8:31. Why do you ask?"

Hermione immediately jerked up from her seat, making her way towards the Portrait Hole's exit. Ginny stood up and before she could ask her what she was in such a hurry for, Hermione was out of sight and the Portrait Hole was closed.

Once arriving in the dungeons, glad that Filch wasn't anywhere near to catch her, she managed to catch her breath by a stone wall. Draco had appeared from behind a corner shortly, hurrying over to her.

"There you are," he said, laughing.

"Sorry I'm late," Hermione said, still wheezing for air. "I had no idea I stayed there so long."

"No harm done, come on, I'll lead you to the Common Room," Draco said, taking her hand. "Wear your hood. Try not to show your face until we're inside. Because believe me, it's gone insane down there..."

Hermione nodded and pulled on her hood, keeping her head down a bit. Draco had taken her to an ordinary, blank stone wall. He nudged her, telling the girl to get ready. Draco cleared his throat.

"_Aethonan Winged Horse_."

Before Hermione could question about the odd password, the wall instantly turned to reveal a short passageway, in which Hermione began to hear endless laughing and yelling. She brought her head down and they entered the Slytherin Common Room, which was currently full of unbearable noise and many bottles of drinks. Quickly and not wanting to get caught, Hermione took a good look around the Common Room.

It had a slighly low ceiling with low green-tinted lamps, green cushions and silver tapestries. Hermione had never stepped foot in this part of the school before, so she found it rather odd to be walking into someone else's Common Room. Slytherins were partying their hearts out, some of them laughing extremely, others swigging insane amounts of what seemed to be Firewhisky, and Hermione even managed to catch a glimpse of a couple snogging on a loveseat.

Draco brought her to a couch and they sat there together, for it was the only unoccupied couch in the entire Common Room. Hermione rested her head on his shoulder for she needed the rest and because it would hide her face from being recognized better. Draco smirked and took a glass from the table sitting in front of them.

"Want some?" he held a glass containing a transparent orange and amber substance to Hermione.

"Sure...I don't think I've ever had Firewhiskey before..."

She took the cup from him and took a sip. Hermione wasn't too fond of the taste for the most part, but she could still see herself in the future drinking it occassionally. Draco laughed at the look of her face and placed the cup back on the table, during which he noticed a schoolbag on the floor.

"...What the?" he picked it up, exploring its contents. "It's my schoolbag."

Hermione stared.

"Here, I'll put it up back in the dorms real quick, you stay here, I don't think anyone will see you."

She nodded as she had no other choice, and continued to look down. Hermione did think she looked rather suspicious for she was the only one not celebrating, and she could swear that Daphne Greengrass looked at her twice before sliding it off her mind. Daphne made her way up the dorms and didn't look back at Hermione.

It had been about ten minutes now and Draco still hadn't come back. Hermione was now growing very nervous for an unsuspecting Pansy was seated next to her on the couch, talking to Theodore Nott. Hermione started to wonder what would happen if a very angry Pansy discovered a Gryffindor among the Slytherins. Pansy reached for the glass of Firewhiskey and turned to Hermione, not being able to see her face.

"Is this yours?" she asked quickly.

Hermione didn't respond at all, instead she jumped off the couch and sped up the dorms. Making her way towards the Boys Dormitory, she heard a pair of voices on the other side, and as much as she knew eavesdropping was wrong, she leaned against the door and listened.

There were two voices. Two, very familiar voices, that of a girl and a boy.

"_Come on, what are you afraid of?"_

_"Nothing. You don't frighten me."_

_"Can't you just spare even a little time with me?"_

_"Now why would I waste my time doing that?"_

_"Hush, Draco, come on."_

_"Dammit, Greengrass, have you had an overdose of Firewhiskey? Because I will gladly scold Miles to stop bringing it!"_

_"I said hush!"_

_"Shut the hell up and get off of me!"_

Unpleasant thoughts immediately broke through Hermione's edges and entered her mind; was she just imagining this? Without any further waiting and hesitation, she opened the door and laid her eyes on a frightening nightmare.

Draco was laid flatly on his bed, with Daphne Greengrass' body was towering over his, kneeling over him; Draco's tie held tightly in her hand. But Hermione paid no further attention to that - their lips seemed to be fiercely locked together in a way Hermione can't recall ever doing so with Draco. The moment Daphne saw Hermione's shadow, she instantly broke away from Draco and stared at her.

Hermione's heart felt like it was thrown off a dozen stories when Draco looked at her blankly.

"Oh, if it isn't Hermione Granger," Daphne said mischievously. "What brings _you_ here?"

Draco shoved Daphne off his body and stood to look at Hermione straight in the eyes. Those piercing gray eyes of his.

"Hermione, no, it isn't - "

But she didn't let him finish. Instead, she stormed out of his sight, out of the Slytherin Common Room, through the entire castle, cursing under her breath. And with every step she took, she could feel water streaming down both of her eyes, splattering on either her robes or shoes. A sudden flame of anger, jealousy and regret burned inside her as she couldn't wait to reach her bed and let the night decide how she long she would be crying.

The only thing that Hermione knew for sure is that she would fight against her own will to never speak to him again.

* * *

**Cliffy? Thank you very much for reading and please, please review, I haven't been recieving reviews from most of my constant reviewers...and you know how much it makes me happy anyway. :) I also want to thank those individuals that have reviewed every chapter in my story. I've also gotten in the habit of updating a tad bit faster, although that it likely to change soon. I've also brought up a little surprise in this chapter, and I know Pansy was the one here who always had to ruin everything, but I guess she's not the only one!**

**For those of you who e-mailed me, yes, Daphne Greengrass exists in the HP World. She's usually seen in Pansy's gang of giggling girls, so there. Google it.**

**As for the next update, I do not know when I will start it and have it up here. From where this one ended you can only guess where it will pick up from next, but other than that, I guess there might be another wait. **

**Okay, that is all. Review?**


	28. His Flawless Surrender

**Whew, several e-mails with pure Daphne-hate! I bring you yet another new update that would have not been brought up now without all of your lovely reviews. Thank you very much. Those of you who were asking about the Death Eaters, don't worry, they'll make a reappearance soon. It's just a matter of time now.**

**Anyway, this one starts with Hermione's point of view, then ends with Narration. I PROMISE to have Draco tell the story next chapter. It took me a while to write, but I guess you can say that I find it satisfying. I was in a very sappy mood as I wrote this, so that definitely helped. I hope you enjoy this chapter! There is an important author's note at the bottom, but we'll leave that until we're finished with this one. :)

* * *

**

_Hermione

* * *

_

I had stayed up reviewing over vocabulary terms for Charms and Transfiguration to get away from my earlier mood, and the next thing I knew, other students seemed to be exiting through their dorms. People had started waking up, and I didn't get any hint of sleep at all. As much as I tried to bring the life back into me, I just couldn't. I was frustrated, angry, and tired.

The only fact that seemed to ease me down a little was the fact that we had an early dismissal today; for the Great Hall would need preparation and arrangement taking place in the afternoon, due to upcoming N.E.W.T.s. Most of the students groaned about the fact that they haven't studied at all and were fumbling through their school bags, racing through the thin pages of their textbooks.

Irresponsibility. If there's one thing someone can name that I cannot stand, it would have to be that.

I walked up to the dorms quickly to brush my hair and put away some of my uneeded textbooks, where I ran into Ginny. She had just woken up, but she was already changed and ready for the day. The rest of the dormitory was completely empty, the girls were either in the restrooms, down in the Common Room, or walking towards the Great Hall.

"Morning, Hermione," she spoke lazily. "Did you have a good sleep?"

"To tell you the truth, Ginny," I said, racing over to my bed. "I didn't get any sleep at all."

"Wow, Hermione, I know N.E.W.T.s. are coming up and everything," Ginny chuckled. "But you shouldn't torture yourself. Everyone needs sleep! What was keeping you up anyway? Homework?"

"Well, homework was _one_ thing," I replied in-between gritted teeth. Anger still resided within me as I relived that horrible incident last night.

After I finished brushing my hair and organizing my schoolbooks, I left the Dormitory, and Ginny followed. I could see that she was trying hard to walk in front of me, to look at me directly in the eye, for she kept strutting behind, looking over my shoulder. As soon as we left the Portrait Hole, I couldn't stand this any longer, and faced her.

"Ginny," I sighed. "What is it?"

"Sorry about that, Hermione, but...you just...seem..._troubled_. Did something happen when you left the party yesterday?"

Should I go ahead and tell Ginny about that horrible excuse for a human, Daphne Greengrass? Or should I just lie to her and tell her my mood came from a night's time spent from studying?

But I needed someone to open up to, I couldn't keep all of these feelings and thoughts bottled up forever, would I? I guided Ginny to a temporary empty corridor and leaned against a wall, frowning. This was it.

"Yes, now that you mention it," I said sharply. "Something _did_ happen."

"Where did you go?"

"The Slytherin Common Room."

Ginny's eyes widened and grew to a size I would have never thought possible, and she gaped at me.

"What were you doing there? How did you get in? Did _Malfoy_ do anything?"

"Oh yes, he did do _something_, all right," I turned away from her gaze to look down at my feet. I found it nearly impossible to tell the story to someone else, this odd sinking feeling wouldn't leave from somewhere in me. What was this?

"Hermione," Ginny whispered softly, her hand placed on my shoulder. "What happened?"

After taking a deep breath, I decided to tell her everything there was to tell. About the Slytherin Common Room, about how I had to hide my face, and about Daphne. And Draco. It was _impossible_ to not grow sober after even thinking of that nightmare.

And before I knew it, I began crying. Why was I crying at a time like this? I, after all, was the one who decided to spill the whole story. _I shouldn't do this in public_, _I thought, people might see..._

Ginny's face grew mild and her eyes saddened greatly as she looked down with pity.

"Oh, Hermione, I'm so sorry..." her voice trailed off to nothing before she decided to speak again. "I don't mean any offense to you, but with a person like Malfoy...I saw something like this happen. And I'm very sorry you had to go through such a thing. Similar events had happened during your sixth year as well, and I don't think I can imagine all the emotional stress you're undergoing..."

I sniffled; my tears were starting to vanish away now. Wiping my eyes with the sleeve of my school robes, I blinked a couple of times to diminish them completely.

"You should just put this whole thing behind you, Hermione," Ginny insisted sweetly. "It'll do you good. Trust me."

"...You're right, Ginny," I looked at her directly in the eye, and she lightened up a little. "Maybe I was wrong to become involved with him in the first place. Harry and Ron were right..."

Ginny walked with me the entire way to the Great Hall for some Breakfast. I wasn't hungry at all, but Ginny recommended it, and this time I decided to not argue. Avoiding any stares with unfriendly Slytherins, I tried my best not to think about last night's events and instead attempted to bring myself into a conversation with Ginny.

But I encountered another series of nightmares once we arrived, for swarms of Gryffindor and Slytherin girls were gasping with shock. Not to surprise, the Slytherin Girls were huddled around Daphne and of course, _Draco_. It wasn't too long after I sat down that Harry and Ron looked at me dubiously, almost as eager to jump out of my seats with questions. The Gryffindor girls were making their way towards us as well, but Ginny shooed them away.

I didn't even have to ask them anything.

"...Who told you?" I asked them coldy.

Ron glared at me reproachfully, but Harry softened up a little and confessed.

"It was her, that Daphne Greengrass girl of Slytherin," Harry rolled his eyes and pointed to her. "She started telling Parkinson about it, louder than needed, and the next thing we knew the entire Great Hall seemed to hear the entire story."

"Not like we wanted to," Ron grumbled, furious. "I told you, Hermione! Why did you ever choose Malfoy in the first place?"

Ginny rushed over to me and crinkled her nose at Ron, shooting him a face, as if telling him to shut up. That's exactly what I wanted. _Everyone_ should just be quiet and let me be!

"D'you reckon, Hermione," Harry questioned kindly, ceasing his eating. "That Daphne forced him to? Maybe he wasn't planning to do that with her in the first place. Perhaps you were drawn to the wrong conclusion."

Ginny beamed. Ron looked rather disgusted, and I was not sure who to believe anymore.

"...Maybe," I spoke flatly. "Maybe not."

My eyes darted over to the Slytherin table quickly, and I could already see Daphne eager to answer the flood of questions being fired at her. I couldn't see Draco's face, however, just his back, and he was in a facepalm, sulking in his seat. Pansy even seemed to grow rather furious with Daphne, as I could hear a wide variety of curse words escaping her mouth.

"Harry does have a point, Hermione," Ginny pointed out, supporting Harry's theory. "You know what? I think you should talk to him."

This information nearly made me choke on my morning toast. I cleared my throat.

"Are you mad? Talk to _him_? That's impossible!"

Harry, Ron, and Ginny's interest with talking any further seemed to grow dull, as they all returned to their breakfasts. Did I say something, perhaps? But they all _did_ have a point, except that of Ron.

Maybe I should just pluck up the courage and talk this over with Draco slowly and steadily. Harry might have been correct with his earlier theory, but I just didn't know wrong from right anymore. Glumly, I ate my breakfast with a small pace, still trying to sort things out in my mind. It grew immensely difficult - I couldn't do this by myself...but this was one of those situations where help would do no good. I had to do it on my own. _All _on my own.

The clock chimed shortly, and I had Transfiguration first thing this morning, and for the first time, I had no desire to proceed to class. All I wished for was to run over to my bed and get a good sleep. But that was far away from me at the moment, there were some things to be done.

"Come _on_," Ginny nagged, elbowing me gently. "Sort it out!"

"Oh, do stop this prattling," I ordered, desperate for all of this to come to an end.

Ginny grimaced at me, and she left the Great Hall shortly to attend class. The rest of the students did so as well, I was one of the last to leave the area. I didn't even dare to look over my shoulder to see if Draco was following me, now was not the time.

Once arriving in Transfiguration, I immediately felt grateful, for this was a class that I didn't share with Draco. Harry and Ron were already seated in their desks when they came, and I didn't take too long to do so either. Professor McGonagall was quietly at her desk, her eyes speed-reading the piece of parchment before her, and her hand was scribbling last-minute notes. As soon as the last student had arrived, closed the classroom door, and was seated, she looked up.

"You are aware," she announced softly, rising from her desk. "That you have upcoming N.E.W.T.s? That there will be an early dismissal as of today?"

A variety of nods, mumbling, and heads shaking with doubt filled the classroom. I could hear Neville from a couple of seats behind me whimpering with apprehension.

"And that you will be taking them tomorrow evening?"

I nodded, in harmony with many other students. Neville took a deep sigh and tousled his hair with stress.

And without another word, Professor McGonagall returned to her desk and once more scribbled on numerous pieces of parchment. This was another review period, I assumed, as we were given in most of our other classes. Students opened their books annoyingly, groaning with boredom, as another quiet and dull session hovered over everyone.

Knowing all of the necessary terms and such, I found myself with nothing to do for about thirty entire minutes. I did not know how I endured such tortorous silence, for I just sat in my seat, textbook still closed.

I wanted to leave the classroom. Maybe I should go to the bathroom and wash my face up a bit. I was growing rather sleepy again, and perhaps a little freshening up will help.

Raising my hand, not even half the class seemed to notice.

"Professor, may I be excused?"

Definitely not in the mood for any further interruptions, Professor McGonagall's head quickly rose up. Her hand let go of her quill and she signaled me to go on and hurry up. As soon as I left my desk, her eyes were fiercely permanent onto her own business once more. I closed and opened the door quietly, and made way to the bathroom in which Moaning Myrtle lingered, for I was in no mood for any company whatsoever. As much as I dreaded for such an irritating ghost to bother me, I think I could handle something as little as that.

The corridors were fairly empty, the only people walking around were first years coming out of several bathrooms, ghosts floating nearby the Entrance Hall, and a Hufflepuff prefect entering the storage rooms.

From outside the bathroom passageway I could already hear Moaning Myrtle, not weeping - but laughing hysterically. Once entering I went to the nearest clean sink and felt totally awake the moment the water made contact with my cheeks. After I finished drying myself, I proceeded to the bathroom stalls, where it wasn't too long until I came to halt.

Moaning Myrtle flew stall by stall, appearing in the one in front of me with a rather pleased expression in her face. She stared at me as if it was an everyday routine.

"What is it?" I asked her, wishing she would hurry so I could get back to class.

"Oh, she has been a bad girl, a very bad girl..." Moaning Myrtle chanted in a voice relative to Peeves, giggling sentence after sentence. "Bringing all this havoc...causing impeding trouble for both...how terrible! Even after what she has already done...she continues!"

"...Excuse me," I said, not even bothering to ask what she was talking about, although it did ring a bell. Moaning Myrtle drifted away and went off to the other side of the bathroom, talking to herself the entire time I used the toilet. Her unbearable laughter died away as I assumed that she had gone off to another area of the castle, still singing.

Once I was finished, I left the bathroom without a sound, and when I turned at a corner - I gasped, only to find myself face-to-face with the _last_ person I needed to speak to.

We started off just staring at each other, the both of our faces stern, our eyebrows raised slightly. My hands reached to hide behind my back, but I couldn't bring myself to do so completely. His eyes turned from the right and the left, and then back to me, and I could perceive that he was looking if there was any people around. The gaze returned determinedly on my own eyes and without further ado, he tugged my sleeve fiercely and trotted towards a storage closet when the Hufflepuff prefect had left.

"What the - hey - what are you doing?" I asked, demanding an answer. My luck was dismal.

Draco didn't reply. Instead, he shut the door and gave a wave of his wand, locking it.

"I'm glad I excused myself from class," he said briefly, before turning back to face me. The room was very small; I was leaning against a wall and there was only about five feet separating our bodies. "We need to talk."

I pouted.

"Oh, now you want to talk? Well, it's a little bit late for that, if you excuse me, I'll be getting back to cla - "

When my hand reached for the door, however, my timing had been slow and Draco and taken a hold of mine, stopping me.

"No," he said sharply. "Stay."

Left without no other choice, I sighed almost too greatly and then slumped my back against the wall again. Draco leaned against wall opposite of me, his hand in his pockets, his right foot crossing over the left. I took the chance to take a closer look at his face - he seemed tired, his cheeks were tinted pink, his eyes had lessened to a duller gray, his eyelids were drooping and his mouth had been curled into a frown. Although he still appeared to be astonishingly handsome, Draco was not in a positive mood at all.

"Tell me...what do you feel?" he asked, his voice only a little raspy.

"...What...what do you mean?"

He knew I was lying. I knew exactly what he was talking about.

"Don't play around, Hermione, I haven't got the time," the strictness of his voice shocked me. "So just tell me so I can get this over with."

Although I did know what he planned to be discussing, what was I supposed to say to him? I know this time I should let him apologize first, I had a strong belief that I had done nothing wrong and this was all his and Daphne's doing.

"...Why did you do it?" I asked out of nowhere.

"Did what?"

"Oh, this is no time for games." I placed my hands on my hips to show him that I was serious about this.

Draco shook his head and raised one of his hands to his temple, shaking his head with guilt. I grew deepy concerned and worried, but the moment I stepped away from the wall to comfort him, he jerked his head away from direct eye contact. I stepped back.

"I really don't know where to take this, Hermione," his voice quavered as if he was suffering from an illness. "It was all just a misunderstanding..."

The sound of regret in his voice send a thousand jolts to my spine and I was unable to speak. Whenever I felt the words spilling out, my mouth just remained open, but I was completely silent. At this rate, all of my senses would go weak and I might perhaps even blame myself for the entire dilemma. But I fought against it.

Maybe, I would start crying, but no - _no_, I refused to let him see me cry anymore until this was sorted out. This wasn't worth my tears.

"Draco...I..." was all I could say.

His gaze turned back to me and the moment our eyes had met once more, I was left completely speechless. Even with just a night without this feeling, I felt like I haven't experienced something like this in years. Draco showed no signs of hesitation to look away as his stare was fixed to my own. I swallowed and I turned my head to the side, although I was still looking at him. About everything was unexpected.

And with a movement so fast, so agile, so _unpredictable_ - Draco rushed foward so that each of his hands stood flatly against the wall on both sides of my head, my body being trapped within his arms, and I was pinned against the wall. I leaned back, my body being pressed even harder against the surface behind me. I couldn't name a time where I've seen his eyes as intense as this. With every breath he drew, I could feel its warmth swirling around my neck.

"Draco...what are you..."

He looked down, and beared a mask of serenity and fear. His head burrowed into my left shoulder, but I could feel his slow breathing on my neck.

_

* * *

Narration

* * *

_

His warmth had provided her comfort in the cold, barren room, their bodies only inches away from one another. Hermione didn't dare make another move with herself enclosed in such a unforeseen and unfamiliar situation. Feelings of sorrow, pleasure, happiness and regret ambled within her and countless conclusions rushed to her head, the truth and the lie stirred in one unpromising choice.

"Do you...feel scared around me, Hermione?" Draco asked her, his voice downhearted yet sadistic.

A single tear had descended from Hermione's cinnamon eyes, the right, just like it always had been. It rolled down her cheek, her neck, and onto the hard lifeless floor. Her hands were still pressed firmly against her chest, slightly trembling, for she was not willing to move. Words dropped the chance to finally speak out and change his mind.

Hermione's shoulders started shaking, and Draco's forehead pressed against her left. Her hands navigated and found the cold surface of the wall, her fingers tracing invisible lines on the solid surface, as if she was reading his skin. Taking a risk, Hermione turned her head so that her nose was on the verge of touching his soft, blonde hair.

She took a whiff of his scent; she could already smell the oceanic cologne and relive the feeling of sand seeping in between her toes. But this was different, she snapped out of her pleasing and tempting gaze and opened her eyes to the real world.

"...What do you feel?" his voice was muffled from her sleeve.

Her eyes were swimming with water and tears clung to her eyelashes, avoiding a fate that awaited them. Hermione choked back even more tears as she strained to offer him a response under such strong tension. Her hands trembling and her heart racing, her mouth gave way and opened.

"I..."

Draco's back was still arched, but Hermione had felt an unfamiliar sensation running down her left shoulder - a little bit of water had sunk through her uniform, seeped through, and the moment it had touched her skin, her body stiffened as if she were petrified. Again, one after another, each droplet broke through the obstacle of her clothes.

"Draco...are you...crying?" as small as the room was, her voice echoed faintly.

He did not answer as Hermione felt a slight vibration on her shoulder. She could feel his every blink of his eyelids and every tear that followed it, as his fingers began to descend slowly on the wall. Hermione didn't wait any longer, she raised her arms and rested her arms on his cold back, embracing him softly. She unglued herself from the wall and allowed her warmth to soothe him.

He cried. She cried, too. Hermione knew that she was the only girl in this entire world to bring Draco into such desolation, leaving a mark that allowed his color to erase easier than before. She hated it. Why was she the one with the terrible ability to worry him so, to listen to him weeping? Why was she the only one with the power to see him like this, asking - _begging_ - for such forgiveness?

She tried, gently, to push his hands away from the wall, but he would not let go. Her hand snaked up his back to his head, stroking the delicate blonde hair that drooped over it. Her brown bushy mane tickled the skin on the side of his neck, but he did not laugh. He didn't even smile.

"...No, Draco, I don't. I'm not scared when I'm with you. I feel unharmed, safe, appreciated...like I do have a purpose to be alive." she spoke into his sweater, her voice drowned out, finally answering.

His hands released the harsh hold of the wall and he returned her embrace. They stood there in the sensitivity of still life, as if they were both trying to recollect the activity that had hung there before.

"You are the reason I'm alive, Hermione."

She had felt like her heart had sunk into a bottomless pit, and whimpered from the sound of his voice repeating itself, ringing in her ears. Her knees might give way but he had her support.

"I'm sorry."

Hermione caved in and broke into a downpour of tears, wishing that she would apologize for soaking his sleeve. She didn't want to forgive herself for surrendering after two simple words; his words could shut down all her senses, and even, perhaps, _weaken her_. Hermione was as fragile as any flower; she was vulnerable.

They pulled away softly and Draco planted a passionate kiss on her lips, then kissed a few of her tears, sending them to oblivion, causing her to melt. The feeling of his moist lips against her tear-glazed skin remained even after moments he had done so. Blinking back any more incoming tears, Hermione stared at him for a moment before he decided it was time to talk again.

"Do you forgive me?"

She thought about it, but the only thing that left her was a gigglish chuckle. Draco looked at her questionably.

"Can I take that as a yes?"

Hermione nodded before letting herself fall into the shelter of his arms again, burrowing her face in his shirt. He lowered his head at her, laughing along as it lightened the both of their moods.

"Is that the best you can do after what I just did?" he asked, watching her rub away some of her tears.

"Oh, Draco, none of us are as perfect as you think we are," Hermione's character rang clearly all over her voice, the breathless laughter running into it. "But some of us can be close."

* * *

**This is official, I will not be uploading any further updates until I reach a certain amount of reviews. I know I will finish the next update before so, but I'll have to wait until I reach 200+. Keep them coming so the update will be up sooner:) I've posted my story in various communities around livejournal to tell more people about it, but if you can help and recommend this fic or something like that, that would be great. Yeah, sorry, but I had to do this to see how many readers are staying tuned, because I have no idea how long I plan this story to be. 15 chapters was the original, but we've gone way past that, haven't we?**

**Anyway, thanks for reading and I can't wait to read your wonderful reviews. Until 200, please, please review! I usually get 10 a chapter, so it won't be that long, hopefully.**


	29. Immeasurable Jealousy

**Yeah. I couldn't help but bring this update up, I really suck at sticking to things. Thanks for all the fantastic reviews. :) As promised, Draco tells the story in this chapter; we haven't heard from him in a while. I guess that's all I must say for now, so please enjoy!

* * *

**

_Draco

* * *

_

"So, tell me, how did it go?" Blaise asked, lying down lazily on his bed, staring at the ceiling of the Boys Dorm.

It had been an entire day since I haven't dared to tell a soul about our little encounter in-between class, and I didn't think about spilling it out to such a person as Blaise. I guess you could call him what I considered a friend, but he was definitely not the best at keeping his own share of secrets. I threw my schooolbag on my bed and threw out most of the contents, for today was the day I dreaded. N.E.W.T.s were taking place in the Great Hall this afternoon after Breakfast.

"Must you keep asking, Blaise? I already told you, I refuse to tell," I said through gritted teeth. Pulling on my school robes and effortlessly folding the sheets of my bed, I made my way down the stairs, leaving Blaise in question.

The Slytherin Common Room downstairs wasn't too empty or too full, so I found it a good start of the day. Most gathered around the tables flipping through their textbooks for some last-minute studying, and I found myself with nothing to worry about at all. I have never been the type to be concerned about school, for I wasn't the best but not the worst either.

Making my way towards the exit, I found Pansy sitting in a couch talking to Miles and I gave her a little wave. She returned it as if nothing had ever happened throughout the year. I wondered how normal this day would turn out to be, after all.

But my leading conclusion to that had ended the moment I was inches away from the exit, where Daphne seemed to magically appear behind a silver tapestry on the wall. She stood in front of me, unwilling to leave, that godawful smile of hers planted right on her face.

"Greengrass, what is it you want now?" I asked her irritatingly. She was the _last_ person I wanted to deal with at the moment. "Move aside, you're in my way."

"Oh, Draco, I was just offering you a little hello, that's all," she chanted quite flirtatiously, but before she could open her mouth again, I shoved her aside and made my way out. I could hear her scoff and stomp away when I left.

The torches lighting the dungeons grew old and dull, and I sped through the dungeons quite fast for I was growing sick of it. Usually I would wait for Miles and Blaise, but they were always far too busy conversing things with Daphne and the like. Several giggling girls strode past me with devilish smirks stuck flat on their faces, but merely glowering at them would immediately sent them away.

When I made way to the Entrance Hall, there seemed to be countless students zipping back and forth from the doors of the Great Hall; probably off to their Common Rooms to fetch their textbooks or to ask further questions. I couldn't help but notice Professor McGonagall exiting the Great Hall with her arms crossed, looking absolutely frustrated.

Making my way towards the long and narrow Slytherin Table, I ran into Hermione, who looked rather flustered indeed and her hair was more bushy than I have ever laid eyes on it.

"Oh, good morning, Draco." she said, breathless and trying to keep up with it.

"What's the matter with you?"

"Nothing, I just didn't get any sleep."

"Studying all night again, haven't we?"

"Of course! What else would I be doing?"

I shook my head in an indistinct way of telling her I understood her purpose. Even I found myself unable to directly fall asleep with all the numerous thoughts racing through my mind at the moment, and I'm glad that we've sorted out everything. Regardless of if the Gryffindors approved or not, I followed Hermione back to her table and sat down beside her.

As expected, a couple of Gryffindors frowned at the sight of me. Hermione shrugged her shoulders at them and gestured them to forget about it. She reached for a plate of toast and quietly started eating Breakfast, her fingers skimming through pages of her textbook simultaneously.

When Potter, Weasley, Weaselette and Longbottom took their seats, they ignored my presence as if I wasn't even there. I know they didn't want to deal with another heated argument, and I was definitely not planning to start one. Weasley seemed to the only one showing that he was putting up with difficulty not to scream his lungs out, for every now and then he shot me a couple of his pathetic glares.

"Actually, Hermione," I caught her attention, placing my hand over her book. She instantly stopped reading and looked up at me. "I'll talk to you after the exams. I'll go to the Slytherin Table."

"Aren't we supposed to have one period of class, you know, considered as a study session?"

"I'm surprised at the fact that we will be taking them in midday whereas the original schedule was during the evening," I replied, disgusted by the sudden changes. "They've removed our study session as well. I'll see you later."

Hermione nodded, approving. She waved at me hurriedly before she stuck her nose back into her book, muttering various incantations that I found unfamiliar under her breath as she continued her accustomed process.

When I took my usual seat at the Slytherin Table, my back facing Hermione, all of the Slytherins seemed to be present. Pansy, as usual, managed to scurry away and take a seat at the other end of the table with a group of worrying Slytherin girls. Unlike those of Gryffindor House, no one in our table seemed to be reaching for their books and spare pieces of parchment to scribble on. They were all conversing with each other as if today was as normal as any other.

Blaise approached me again, an apple clutched firmly in his hand.

"We have another Hogsmeade Weekend on Saturday," he muttered after taking a large bite. "That's tomorrow. Have any plans?"

I returned him a look gloomily.

"Dunno, haven't thought about it."

"Spending the weekend with Granger, are you?"

He was really getting on my last nerve now. I knew where he was going with this.

"Listen, Blaise, perhaps you're better off asking Miles or something. I'm not interested. I don't even know if I'm going."

Blaise crinkled his nose at me, obviously upset, and walked away to find another fellow Slytherin to question. Indeed, I have been thinking about the upcoming Hogsmeade weekend, of course I would prefer to spend it with her to ease down all the trouble on her shoulders a bit, but I planned to ask her after the exams, it'll have to wait until then.

When Breakfast was nearing its end, Professor McGonagall had ordered the students to proceed to their Common Rooms and return to the Great Hall after ten minutes to take the N.E.W.T.s. I haven't even gotten anything to eat when we were dismissed, and I do wish I would have acted earlier. I walked along with a chattering Blaise back to the Common Room, not listening to a ridiculous word he was saying.

I slumped my body down on the couch, and the people in the surrounding couches around me were Blaise, Miles, Theodore, Pansy, and to my absolute disgust, Daphne. Whether they had a reason to talk to me or not, I didn't leave, seeing as I had nothing else for me to do.

"What do you guys plan to do tomorrow?" Miles asked out of nowhere, reaching for a piece of candy in the pile on the table nearest to him.

"Probably just get a bite to eat," Blaise informed, elbowing Theodore. "Theodore and I are going. Want to come, Miles?"

"Guess it won't hurt," he popped a piece of chocolate in his mouth. "What about you, Daphne?"

She annoyingly twirled her finger in her pigtails, rolling her eyes refusing to answer. I caught her raising an eyebrow at me cheerfully, but I didn't want to think about returning it.

"Pansy?" Miles unwrapped another piece of candy.

"...I don't know, I'll probably just stay here with Millie," she said, ruffling her short dark hair. I felt a pang of guilt hit me a little; I remember spending most of my Hogsmade weekends with Blaise and Pansy, I would have asked her to come along if I could, but that just wasn't the best idea since I was now involved with Hermione. I let it go and forgot about it, returning to reality.

"What about you, Draco?"

"Who knows."

Everyone but Pansy and Daphne's eyes darted to me suspiciously, eyeing me. Theodore raised an eyebrow in which Blaise elbowed him in the chest, and Miles would not stop his constant sniggering. Pansy looked cross, while Daphne found enough amusement to twirling strands of her hair with a finger, humming to herself. They were really starting to tick me off.

"Strolling around with Miss Granger again, now, are we?" Miles asked everyone in a mock-thoughtful voice. Theodore was the only one who laughed, but I can clearly see that Blaise was trying hard to fight back his laughter.

"I think so," Daphne replied, tittering with her hand in front of her mouth, laughing a little too much.

"Oh, do shut your worthless mouth, Greengrass," Pansy snapped, rising from her seat. She tugged Blaise's sleeve and he did not wait to follow her away from the couches. "Come on, let's go back to the Great Hall."

Daphne looked at her as if she had been slapped hard in the face, but grumbled to herself, throwing a cushion to the floor before following them. Theodore and Miles stood in front of the exit of the Slytherin Common Room, and I didn't have to ask to accompany them on their way there. Throughout the entire time we strode through the corridors, they did not speak a word to me.

I was reminded horrendously of our O.W.L.s. The Great Hall was arranged exactly as it had been during our fifth year examinations - the four House tables had been removed and replaced instead with many tables for one, all facing the staff-table end of the hall. Professor McGonagall stood facing the students, with a long piece of parchment that almost trailed to the floor, clearing her throat to gesture the students to hurry up and sit down in their assigned seats.

Yesterday's early dismissal absolutely had no point to it, if they could arrange the Hall this fast...

Once Miles and Theodore had left me, I looked around for Hermione, around where all the other 'G's were sitting. I overlooked the middle row and immediately felt pity.

Hermione sat crouched in her seat, muttering incantations, whereas to my horror, Daphne Greengrass sat behind her, constantly reaching out to tug a strand of Hermione's hair for reasons I did not know. She was only successful a few times, then groaned in failure once Hermione found the process familiar and leaned foward in time.

I quickly made my way to my seat and stared at the piece of parchment on my desk, turned down. When all students were seated, Professor McGonagall turned over a colossal hourglass where spare quills, ink bottles, and parchment resided, and said, "You may begin."

Eyes scanning the paper, I felt regret instantly - I really should have listened to Hermione and studied more. Turning to look her direction, she already whispering to herself and scribbling down on her exam, beaming. The only sound in the Great Hall now were quills tracing against their parchment, and the occassional sound of a student coughing or sneezing. This was going to be a very long period indeed.

- - -

"My God, I never want to take those again," Pansy rolled her eyes indignantly, after the exams. "We'll have to continue them after the weekend...dammit."

It was now dinner in The Great Hall, all students had proceeded to their Common Rooms after testing and returned for dinner. The four House tables have returned in no time and the majority of the students were only just returning from their dorms, most of them making the wise choice to take a quick nap. I haven't gotten any sleep at all. Theodore, Miles, Pansy, Blaise, and Millicent continued to discuss whether or not they could pull of cheating on the next part of the examination or about the questions they have answered correctly. I left and made way to the front, where I met Hermione.

"Merlin, Hermione, what happened to _you_?"

Her skin had lost its proud glow, especially around her cheeks. Her eyelids grew heavy and started fluttering, a book clutched in her hand, and her hair was a jumble, even bushier than I have ever recalled seeing it. Sighing, her body fatigue, she still managed to give me a smile. I pulled her awy from an intruding crowd of Hufflepuff girls.

"That was overwhelming," Hermione complained matter-of-factly. "I do not clearly see the point in removing our study session this morning. And that poor excuse of a student, that wench Daphne Greengrass wouldn't stop her accustomed manner of pulling my hair during the test! And because of that, I'm afraid I'm only along the lines of an 'A', Acceptable - "

" - And that's a _bad_ thing?" I wondered dubiously. "Look at yourself. You need to unwind and take a break."

"...You really think so?" Hermione responded, frowning a bit.

"Don't you think I am? Come on, you hardly get enough sleep. Hell, you hardly eat anything at all. There's a Hogsmeade weekend tomorrow and I really would be less troubled if you get a good sleep and come with me. What do you say?"

"...You're right, Draco. This is ridiculous," she raised her shoulders. "Sure. I'll come with you. Any specific time and place you want to meet?"

"Doesn't matter, just be here at Breakfast. And get some sleep immediately." I ordered, and Hermione smiled at me deviously.

"Goodnight." She stood on her toes and gave me a quick peck on the cheek, prancing off to Gryffindor tower. I waved and walked back to the Slytherin table, where most of them had just finished eating dinner.

"Come on, let's go to the Common Room," Miles yawned, sluggishly rising from his seat. Blaise and Pansy followed us along the way. Students were now beginning to stream out of the tall doors of the Great Hall, off to their Common Rooms to get some sleep. We passed the unused girls bathroom and Daphne emerged out of it, her face troubled. As soon as she caught sight of us, she quickly sped back inside.

"So," I turned to them. "Pansy, what are you doing for the weekend?" I asked, sort of relieved that she was not afraid to speak to me anymore.

She bit her lip before talking for a moment, then Blaise elbowed her gently. Pansy crinkled her nose at him.

"Don't know, I'll probably just come with Blaise," she replied, and Blaise gave her a look of doubt. "And yes, Blaise, I'm coming with you whether you like it or not."

"Whatever," Blaise mumbled before saying the password to the entrance of the Common Room. Pansy walked over to the couches where Millicent currently resided, deep in conversation with a third year. Blaise made way to the Boys Dorm immediately and I followed, instantly falling asleep the moment I rested my head on top of the pillow.

- - -

Waking up the next morning, I was sort of pleased to see the sun out. It had been a while since the weather had been this cheerful, so I quickly got dressed in my casual clothing and made way down to the Common Room. Most of the students had already waken up, and almost every one of them were talking about their plans for the later hours of today. Miles and Theodore talked to Blaise and Pansy, and it must have been quite interesting, for the four of them were laughing. There was no sign of Daphne anywhere.

Good.

Once I left the dungeons, students were already filing out of the Entrance Hall and out to the school grounds to go to Hogsmeade. A flood of Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs came down to Breakfast before me, the most of them getting in my way. After they were out of sight, my eyes turned to Gryffindor table to find her and just leave this ruddy school.

But she wasn't there. The seat was empty, in fact, all of her friends were there, but Hermione was nowhere to be seen. Perhaps she was still sleeping or on her way to the Great Hall as I spoke. But before I could draw to any final answer, something was placed atop my eyes and all my sight was concealed. Someone's hands.

"Guess who?" a familiar voice called out, but it had an unfamiliar giggle that I was sure belonged to someone else.

I didn't even bother guessing as I quickly pulled their hands out of my face, turning to face the individual who challenged me with their actions. It was Hermione.

"Hermione? Since when did you play games such as that?" I questioned, wondering her purpose.

"Erm, since, ever," she tittered, constantly placing her hands behind her back. She was acting rather differently._ Huh?_

"...Anyway," I said, late on cue, telling myself that there was nothing to be so preoccupied about. It was just Hermione, after all. "Off to the carriages?"

"Definitely," she replied excitedly, and with a motion so fast that I didn't take notice, she clutched my arm and embraced it in a way so relative to Pansy. Never did I recall seeing her acting so odd, but she just might have felt more carefree today now that there was nothing for her to study over. We found an empty carriage with a white unicorn and stepped inside. I allowed her in first, and she laughed hysterically once she finally let go of my arm. _What the hell?_

"So, Draco," she began once the carriage started moving, the road slightly bumpy. "Where do you want to spend the day at?"

"I guess a quick drink won't hurt," I confessed; I really did miss the taste of Butterbeer. Drinking Pumpkin Juice during every meal really did grow boring. "Let's take a quick visit to The Three Broomsticks. I've brought money if you're short."

"Wonder how busy Madame Rosmerta is today, there's many students arriving," Hermione asked herself, her voice pondering.

"She won't be busy, Hermione, have you forgotten? She...died."

"Oh. Really?"

"Yes, she is. What? Don't tell me you've forgotten!"

"Oh, of course not, silly me, sorry about that."

"Whatever you say..."

I was beginning to find this unfamiliar side of Hermione to be quite peculiar, but I stuck to my previous thoughts. A good night's sleep might have done her some good. The carriage stopped after about ten minutes of pointless conversation and we left after paying the horseman, and walked down the fairly crowded streets of Hogsmeade. The smell of sweets arose from the popular Honeydukes and swarms of girls gathered around Madam Pudifoots.

We approaced the Three Broomsticks, and the entire time we walked towards a vacant table, Hermione clung to my arm as if this was her last day alive; as if she was aware that another individual might just snatch me away from her. Once seated on by a windowcarrying a pot of dead flowers, Hermione let go and tapped her fingersvigorously on the table.

Madame Rosmerta wasreplaced with a sharp-nosed woman. Lookingover at the front of the pub,her eyes were cat-like, her hair wasa vibrant blonde and her skin freakishly pale. Her cheeks were tintedwith a strong red and her dressseemed to be made of animal fur. She did not look too friendly, for after Hermione decided to stand up and order two Butterbeers,she shooed her away, scolding her that our drinks will be ready in awhile.

I noticed through the corner of my eye that Hermione had developed the unlikely manner of tucking strands of hair behind her ear and constantly adjusting her clothes. I found it rather out of her character but I didn't want to inform her about it, for that might insult her.

It took about twenty minutes until our order had arrived on the table, the sharp-nosed woman slamming it onto our table, her hand reaching out and demanding payment. Hermione seemed to have money and offered it to her quickly, and the woman quickly snatched it away, strutting back to the front. I pulled my glass of Butterbeer towards me and took a quick sip. Hermione did the same.

"It's hard to believe how long the Death Eaters are waiting, especially after our last encounter," I said quietly after about another ten minutes so the others in the pub would not take notice. "I guess they come and go when we least expect it...it's not too long now, only a matter of time..."

"...Right," Hermione squeaked nervously, blowing on the bubbly fizz that gathered on top of her Butterbeer glass. She seemed to find no interest in our conversation and more entertainment with the bubbles.

"Listen, Hermione," I started. "Don't take this as an offense, but are you sure you're all right?"

"Whatever do you mean, Drakkie?"

_...Drakkie?_ What in Merlin's name was with _that_? I ignored it, as with everything else.

"...Ahem, well, you don't seem like yourself. Are you sure nothing is the matter?"

"Oh, there's definitely nothing to worry about," Hermione raised her shoulders and beamed extremely. "I'm fine. Excuse me for a bit, I'm off to the bathroom." She scooted her chair back, making an ear-piercing screeching noise and scuttled to the Girl's Lavatory. I was left to wait dully for her return, until two familiar faces arrived in the pub and went over to my table.

"Well, hello," Blaise asked, Pansy accompanying him. "What are you doing here alone?"

"I'm not here alone, Hermione's in the bathroom," I admitted unwillingly. "What about you two? You look like you've had fun." I said, referring to the dominant smile glued to Blaise's face.

Pansy blushed.

"Well, we visited Honeydukes for a while, they're running low on stock, so it pretty much sucked," she replied, folding her arms across her chest. Blaise nodded, agreeing with every word she said.

"So what brings you two here?"

"Just wanted a couple of drinks, is all," Blaise said, his head turning towards the direction where Hermione had ran off to. "Blimey! Is that really the Granger I've grown to loathe?"

"What are you talking about?" I widened my eyes, and Pansy gaped, staring off into the distance, the same direction where Blaise's eyes were stuck flat.

"I see what you mean," she laughed dubiously. "That can't be her."

I arose from my seat in a rush to see what childish manner they were talking about now. A girl emerged from the bathroom door, who I would've considered to be Hermione, but I was drawn from that conclusion. She looked completely different from before she had left the table only moments ago. She walked up to us as if she had not a clue that we were all staring at her.

"Hello, I'm back," Hermione said cheerfully, then turned to Blaise and Pansy. "Draco, what are _these _two doing here?"

All three of us stared at her, speechless.

"What are you all staring at?"

Blaise smirked and elbowed Pansy once again. She flinched from the sudden movement, but snickered at the sight that laid before her. I couldn't help but join them as well, as I was already sure of what was coming ahead. This was unbelievable.

"Well, well, Miss Granger," Pansy sneered. "Since when did you have green eyes?"

"Green eyes? Wha-? Oh..." 'Hermione' trailed off, looking down nervously at her feet. She was cursing under her breath.

"And straight hair, yes?" Pansy continued.

'Hermione' ran her fingers through her suddenly straight brown hair nervously, panicking and frustrated. Blaise and Pansy broke into silent fits of laughter as I watched her facial features change into that of a very familiar girl that I was very dissappointed to see.

"Daphne?" I asked, already ticked off.

"Ha, she Polyjuiced her!" Blaise cackled, fighting himself to hold back tears of laughter. "You pathetic desperate little..."

Pansy slapped Blaise hard on the back after noticing how angry I was. Blaise instantly ceased his laughing and frowned at once after Pansy glared at him threateningly. I continued to look down at Daphne angrily.

"Oh...um..." Daphne muttered, her mind blank.

"What the hell are you doing here?" I questioned her, already trying my hardest not to scream, for this was definitely something the entire pub did not need to hear about. Pansy and Blaise grumbled at her, the pressure on Daphne piling up rapidly. "Where's Hermione?"

"She's at the school, that Mudblood's probably still asleep," Daphne continued, rolling her eyes and flipping some hair over her shoulder.

"Asleep? At this hour? What are you, mad?" Pansy snarled.

"I did happen to lace her pumpkin juice with a Sleeping Draught before she came for dinner, so -"

"Dammit, Daphne, I don't need any more of this from you!" I bellowed. "Crazy bitch..."

"He's right, you ought to - " Blaise began, but he was cut off with various startling screams emerging from outside the pub. Pansy shrieked and I felt her jerk the back of my jacket.

"What was that?" A terrified woman from the table aside us yelped.

Blaise and Pansy ran towards the door and I did not hesitate to follow, leaving Daphne behind. Once Pansy kicked the door open people from the pub started streaming out of the door, knocking us over to our backs. They screamed and swarms of people cried for help outside, all the doors from the shops and hotels swinging open as crowds ran away from whatever was approaching.

"What are they running from...?" Pansy asked, coughing, after Blaise had helped her up.

Our sight darted to the left, where a group of black hooded figures shot various spells with multiple colors out of their wands, their faces concealed with masks.

"Damn, not now!" I screamed, making my way back into the pub where Blaise and Pansy followed. Daphne was still standing there, hating herself.

"Greengrass, no questions, just hurry up and get back to the school without the Death Eate -"

"But why are we - "

"Just shut up and hurry along!" Pansy took hold of Daphne's sleeve and pulled her out of the pub and the four of us began to run back towards the carriages, gasping for air.  
**

* * *

I hope you liked the chapter. :) I know, some of you may think that this wasn't the most satisfying after a wait, I do too, but this was all I could stir up. My computer didn't work for a while so the file kept disappearing, so again, sorry about that. I haven't the slightest idea when I will update next, school will be starting soon and things have been very busy in real life, so I guess we'll just have to wait and see. I think this story's progress will trail into during the school year, so forgive me if I show any lack of updates. Anyway, please review and I hope to hear from you all soon. **


	30. Open To Doubt

**It took me a while to write this because school is now on its way, but thank you all very much for your reviews. I'm very happy to have reached my 200 goal. :) I've been busy with other things as well, but I still managed to find some time to work on this. Anyway, this chapter starts out with a short start with Draco, then reverts to a narration, finishing the chapter. I'm not entirely satisfied with this chapter, I had a serious case of writer's block as I wrote this, but I guess it's fine. Please enjoy the chapter. _

* * *

Draco

* * *

_**

Now was definitely not the time for the Death Eaters to meddle; I had to hurry back to the school and warn Hermione, who might have still been asleep. People were running for their lives as one person after the next were shot with a jet green light, straight through their chests, falling lifelessly to the ground with no other purpose to stay. 

Daphne's horrid wailing pierced through the air even more loudly than everyone else's as she followed us, constantly looking back.

"Greengrass, you need to get your sorry ass over here faster or they're going to get you!" Pansy hissed, teasing her with the slightest bit of entertainment, gesturing for Daphne to quicken her pace. She did with no hesitation, scared senseless.

Blaise pulled his wand out of his back pocket and dared to fire a couple of spells back at the Death Eaters, all of them failing as they were eliminated into oblivion with other spells. He went through several attempts before finally giving up, shoving his wand back into his pocket as we were nearing the carriages.

The Death Eaters were still a safe distance away as Blaise ran to the only carriage with horses left, for the others have been scared away from all the noise, mounting himself on the white animal's back. Pansy and Daphne arrived just after I did, and they were all in panic.

"What do we do?" Blaise asked, his head and shoulders trembling. His eyes scanned the area, the Death Eaters were still not in sight and their presence still stood behind the several shops at the end of town, but their spells were still soaring to the sky, approaching us closer.

"We have to get back to the school!" Daphne shrieked, her shaking hands pulling her hair in distraught. Pansy rolled her eyes at the mere sight of her, mumbling what seemed like '_We already knew that, wench_...'

"Get on the other horse," Blaise ordered. "We can't apparate into Hogwarts, and we want to do this quickly!"

Everyone exchanged glances.

"NOW!"

Pansy and Daphne ran to the horses and I followed, although I was not used to taking orders from other people. Daphne's feet were still planted firmly on the ground, and Pansy was trying to hoist herself up Blaise's horse. Luckily, like I had just planned to, I caught her eye before she was already sitting.

"Don't you dare leave me with that half-wit dolt," I grumbled to Pansy demandingly, referring to Daphne. The last thing I needed right now was to have Daphne's bloody hands holding on to my mid-section during the ride back to the school, especially after all the failure that dwelled within her after a month's attempt to disguise herself as Hermione. Disgusting, absolutely disgusting; I already knew without asking that Daphne was using this new plan of escape to her advantage...

Pansy widened her eyes and raised her eyebrow before jumping off the horse, and Blaise looked as if he was on the verge of throwing up.

"Fine, fine," she said carelessly, as she helped herself on top of the other horse. I followed and it seemed to be ages until Daphne was finally rested behind Blaise on the opposite horse, still whimpering annoyingly. Blaise shot me a murderous look and I knew that I had to explain some terms with him later.

"Dammit, Draco, can't you -" Blaise began, but he was cut off with a scream that did not belong to Daphne, but to Pansy.

"Hurry up! The Death Eaters!" She scolded to Blaise, who immediately lifted his wand out of his back pocket and with a couple of sparks, the horses were freed from the various chains that held them to the carriages and started with a small trot which developed into a fairly fast run. The horse that Pansy and I were on was just behind Blaise and Daphne's, and even from here I could hear Blaise cursing under his breath.

Pansy turned around and saw that the Death Eaters were approaching even faster, and she nudged the side of her feet the horses' side faintly to ensure them that we needed to go faster. After several attempts and still no difference in speed, Pansy began to panic as she held tight when our horses made way up a hill.

"Draco, where should we go once we're back in the castle?" Pansy asked, keeping a good eye on Blaise and Daphne's horse.

"I have to find Hermione," I answered flatly, honestly not knowing my first move once we left the horses. Pansy nodded, this information sufficient to her, and turned her head back behind us. The chanting of the Death Eaters was growing louder, and the sounds of various jinxes and hexes being fired into our direction weren't too hard to miss, and were nearing closer than I thought possible. I turned around as well, trusting the horse to follow its partner.

Pansy turned back to look at Blaise and Daphne, and her eyes were instantly deepened with horror. "Draco, the HORSE!"

Her loud voice rang in my ears and my head zipped back to face foward, where Blaise and Daphne's horse had instantly taken a sharp turn to the left. I quickly nudged the horse to indirectly tell it to follow the other, but it didn't obey me. Pansy tried by kicking its side as well, a little too fiercely, but this only frightened the horse and it went into a frenzy.

"Oh, come on!" Pansy pulled out her wand and sent a spark of bright orange light where the other horse had run off to. The head of the horse jerked up and caught sight of the light, tempted to follow it as if it were something greatly appealing.

Luckily the horses' speed increased greatly and accepted the demand and made way toward the direction where Blaise and Daphne headed off to.

"Crap, they're behind us!" Pansy pointed her wand out dangerously to the clan of Death Eaters racing behind us, snickering, several rays of the _Avada Kedavra _still emerging from the tips of their wands. The horse found the sudden surroundings unfriendly and rose its two front legs, neighing. Pansy fought and fought but she slipped off the end and I fell with her, for her hand was clasped tightly on my sleeve.

The horse trotted away into the distance.

"Hurry up," I ran faster than any time I could remember, even with Pansy's hand tugging on the back of my jacket, directly behind me. Both of our wands were present and Blaise and Daphne couldn't be too far. Pansy jumped several times and pulled me to the side whenever any spells from the Death Eaters came our way.

I could tell she was starting to get tired for the uneven, merciless ground beneath our feet began to arise into yet another hill harshly, the Death Eaters still with enough strength remaining in them from the beginning. I shoved Pansy in front of me, and although she looked questionable, she continued to run, rocks sliding from under her foot.

"Stupefy!" A white light bursted out of the tip of my wand and caused a couple of Death Eaters to collapse on top of one another, giving us only barely extra time to run faster. When I turned around, I saw that Pansy was far ahead of me as she was almost at the top of the hill, and the tallest towers of Hogwarts were already visible.

"Draco, please hurry!" She begged, stopping a little to wait.

"Don't be ridiculous, don't stop, find Blaise and Daphne!"

"They should be at the top of the hill, you don't expect me to just run and leave you!"

"Just go!"

"Shut up and just hurry!"

This was clearly not the time to have any more bickering fights so even though it was greatly weakening, I could feel my feet hammering onto the ground faster and before I knew it, Pansy was only merely feet away and almost the entire castle came into sight. Pansy turned around every now and then to keep and eye at the Death Eaters, and she aimed countless hexes at the crowd trailing behind us.

Pansy looked at me.

"Come on, we're almost there - "

Suddenly she stopped mid-sentence, her mouth still open, her eyes losing its glow and her body falling limply to the ground at my feet.

_

* * *

Narration

* * *

_

"Jeez, she pretty much wasted the entire day."

"I dunno, I've never seen her sleep this long."

"You're right, she's usually up first in the morning..."

"Was she up studying for the next exam again?"

"Nope, I remember her leaving dinner quite early, she told me she was going to sleep."

"Oh come on, you can't just trust her like that."

"She really did look like she needed sleep, so maybe she's just really tired, big deal..."

"Ginny, you should wake her."

"Why me?"

"Because if I did, she'll only go mad."

"Why don't you tell Lavender to do it?"

"Are you kidding me? You know she hates it when I bug her."

"Come on, just hurry up."

"Oh, fine."

A warm hand was placed on one of her shoulders as she was nudged gently, but it seemed to have no effect on her still body covered by soft blankets. The process was repeated again, each one stronger after the other, and she felt as if a moment of glory was being pulled away from her. They were disturbing her privacy and that was the last thing she wanted.

"Hermione, wake up," one of the girls said softly, patting her side, hoping it would help.

With enough strength in her tired self, Hermione tried to swat their hands away which only turned to be a little sucessful, and dove under the blankets. Her head buried under the pillow, wishing for no further noise from the people trying to wake her. She groaned in disgust with every nudge they gave her.

"HERMIONE! Wake up!" another screamed.

She was furious and she decided that there was no point in trying to fall asleep, so instead of refusing to accept their request again, Hermione's head shot straight up to face a mild-faced Ginny, Parvati, and Lavender.

"What in the name of Merlin is your problem?" Hermione asked, her hair flustered in all directions, her face heavy.

"I dunno if you've noticed, Hermione, but you kind of slept in late," Lavender pointed out, crossing her arms frustratingly.

"Don't be stupid," Hermione shook off from her thoughts, looking outside a nearby window, in where the sky was dull. "It's not even midday yet, why did you have to wake me? There's a break way into the weekend today, and sleep is the number one thing I need at the moment, so - "

"No, it's past midday, it's past afternoon, and it's nearing evening," Ginny corrected her, taking in a deep sigh after sitting herself at the foot of Hermione's bed, the matress sinking from their combined weight.

"What? No!" Without warning Hermione jumped straight out of her bed, nearing crashing into Parvati, who managed to dodge the sudden action. Hermione looked through her belongings and quickly pulled on a pair of jeans, a rose-colored sweater and her Gryffindor scarf. She tucked her wand in her pocket, almost forgetting to do so. Running a brush through her hair halfheartedly, she began to run towards the door, when she stopped dead in her tracks to face the three girls.

"Have you heard from Draco? Did he go to Hogsmeade without me?" Hermione asked them, almost breathless.

"Heh, no, like he'll tell us anything," Ginny said abruptly, swinging her feet back and forth as she sat on Hermione's bed. Both Lavender and Parvati expressed disgust the moment they heard Hermione's boyfriends' name.

"...Anyway, I'm off, see you later," Hermione said blankly.

"Where are you off to?" Parvati questioned.

"Well, to Hogsmeade, of course," Hermioine told her matter-of factly, although she did not know how she would get there. The carriages were probably all gone, and she was doubting the fact that Filch would let her go this late, unaccompanied.

Nonetheless, Hermione raced down the stairs of the Girls' Dormitory down to the Gryffindor Common Room, where some students looked over their purchased items from the day off, and found Harry, Ron, and Neville lounging in the bunch of crimson armchairs by the fireplace. A stash of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans resided in the table in the center of them all.

Ron was the first to speak.

"Blimey, about time you're up, 'Mione," he said, popping a yellow bean in his mouth, chewing it rather quickly.

"Yeah, sorry, I don't know what has gotten into me," Hermione told them idly. The three of them just continued to stare at her questionably, eating the candy, until Harry decided that it was his turn to talk.

"Are you sure you're all right, Hermione?"

Hermione flinched slightly.

"I dunno, you seem a little tense," Neville muttered, trying his hardest not to madden her.

"...Oh, don't be silly, I'm fine, just woke up really late," she tucked strands of her hair behind her ear nervously. "Say, have any of you heard from Draco today? I was supposed to meet him in the Great Hall during Breakfast, but I'm afraid I was still asleep..."

Neville's cheeks flushed and he shook his head shyly, Harry stood dead still for a moment before mumbling _no_, and Ron grimaced at her for even mentioning the Slytherin boy. Hermione took this to be not helpful at all so she just gave them a quick wave and made her way out of the Portrait Hole.

Before leaving the Common Room completely, she could hear the voice of Ron tell the other two, _"Pathetic, I dunno what she sees in that ferret..."_

Some students were present in the corridors, and Hermione assumed that some of them were still in Hogsmeade or in their Common Rooms. Dinner would not be held in the Great Hall until about thirty minutes to come, so she did not have much to worry about. She was already exhausted by the time she had finished running through the fleet of stairs at the Enchanted Staircase, and she made way to the Entrance Hall and out the giant oak doors sluggishly.

Like she had assumed, no carriages were present, but Filch was nowhere to be seen. Hermione walked through the grassy front of the school grounds and indeed tried to find any student in her prescence, but she was encountered with none.

But instead, she could hear the sounds of horses neighing in the distance. Hermione jogged to where the noise was coming from, a little bit far from the school boundaries and somewhere near the path leading to Hogsmeade. There, she found two horses and two very familiar students. Before she could call out to them even if she wasn't planning to, they spotted her first.

"Well well, Granger, good _morning_," A rather exhausted Blaise Zabini said to her, in a tone that was almost considered polite. Aside Blaise, trying to calm down the other horse was a very upset Daphne Greengrass, cursing at the mere sight of Hermione. "Slept a little late?"

"Do mind your own business," she snapped at him, before turning back and beginning to make way back to the school.

"Wait," Blaise stopped her. "Draco's looking for you."

Hermione did not wait to turn back and walk towards Blaise, Daphne, and the horses. She was already filled with questions and they were already on the verge of bursting out uncontrollably, but she did not want them to look upon her as such a desperate being.

"You've seen Draco? Where is he?" She asked, fully determined. Daphne rolled her eyes and folded her arms across her chest.

"Apparently this insanely jealous git Polyjuiced herself into you so Draco could go on a little date with her," Blaise jerked his head towards Daphne, finding much amusement in her further embarassment. Who wouldn't? "And laced your Pupkin Juice with a Sleeping Draught! And I thought she couldn't get any stupider."

Daphne stuck her tongue out at him.

"Oh, very mature, Daphne."

_Well, that explains why she was yanking my hair during the exams_, _and Moaning Myrtle's prattling in the bathroom that one day_, Hermione thought to herself, straining in why she hadn't thought of it earlier.

Hermione glared at Daphne furiously and reduced her eyes to slits before realizing that this was not the time to argue over Daphne's witty but predictable actions. She looked back at Blaise, wanting more answers from him, clearing her throat.

"Oh, well, Pansy and I met him in the Three Broomsticks, and after we figured that it was Daphne and not you, Death Eaters came out of nowhere," Blaise explained, himself finding it rather uncanny to be telling a Muggleborn like Hermione all this information. "After that we ran into a carriage with two horses, Draco and Pansy were on the this one," he pointed to a rather scratchy horse, whose shiny skin was smudged with dirt. "But when it came to us, they weren't here at all. Damn, I wonder where they are..."

"He's alright, isn't he?"

"I honestly don't know, Granger, does it look like I would?'

"Well, if there were Death Eaters coming, shouldn't you at least tell the school?"

"We were planning to, but I'm more concerned about those two, if it wasn't so bloody obvious."

"Stupid Parkinson probably led him the wrong direction, she's probably dragging him through the forest and they're begging for their life," Daphne said mockingly, giggling at the indirect insults she had just fired to them about Pansy.

Although Hermione did not have a liking for such a competitive and pompous soul such as Pansy, she had a dying temptation to slap, perhaps even punch, Daphne's face so that infuriating giggle would be muted from the world forever. But Hermione held her temper within her, not knowing what to do next.

"Shouldn't we look for them?" she asked Blaise.

"Do that if you want, I wouldn't risk my life, there's Death Eaters running about," Blaise's eyes widened.

"Yeah, right, you're just worried about Parkinson," Daphne muttered. Blaise ignored her.

Hermione's hands started to shake, _not again_, she thought, _not again_...she buried her face in her shivering hands in front of them, not having a care in the world if they were watching, but she did not cry, she did not know she managed to fight the tears back. Instead she sighed deeply several times in pure frustration, wondering how she would get them all out of this mess this time. Maybe now they wouldn't be so lucky...

"Not to mention the fact he'll have to deal with his father...I wonder how he's putting up with this," Blaise continued.

"Oh, going to cry now, are we?" Daphne teased her with a fake baby voice.

"Piss off, Greengrass," Blaise shot at her, and even something as simple as that seemed to jab Daphne straight through the chest. Hermione would have grinned, but she could not gather the effort to do so. She was weak, absolutely weak.

"...I'm going to look for him," Hermione said in strong belief that she could actually do it herself. She pulled out her wand from her pocket and looked at them. They only returned looks of doubt.

"Are you insane? You won't survive out there, the Death Eaters are shooting _Avada Kedavra_slike there's no tomorrow," Blaise taught as if it was a whole new experience. "You've never seen anything like it, Granger!"

"Oh, trust me, I have," Hermione replied in an undertone, taking a quick second to remember all their past encounters and narrow escapes. They were lucky at the time, weren't they? "Now where were Draco and Pansy separated from you - "

"Over there!" Daphne screamed, her hand placed over her mouth in surprise. Hermione and Blaise turned to the direction where her finger was pointing.

Just looming over the edge of the hill that stood a couple of feet ahead of them, a boy with very pale skin and almost lifeless eyes walked up to them gradually, a body of a familiar girl draped over his shoulder. She did not seem to be moving the slightest bit, and with every second that passed, he drew out uneven breaths, finally collasping to the dirty ground below him, the girl's body sprawled on the floor like a discarded childrens' doll.

"DRACO!" Hermione wailed, her feet running towards him, kneeling in front of him instantly and cupping his head with her vibrant, shaking hands. She leaned over as far as she could, kissing his forehead, and was relieved the moment she felt the remaining warmth on Draco's skin.

Blaise approached them quickly and ran over to Pansy's body, trying to shake her awake. Daphne stood next to him, watching Blaise's several but failing attempts. She wore a smug look on her face, but Blaise did not stop.

"...Hermione," Draco coughed weakly through dry lips, and his usual icy gaze was near non-existent. "I'm fine, I - "

"No you're not, we have to get you to the Hospital Wing immediately! Look at you, you're covered in dirt and you can barely walk - um - here, I'll take you there, I'll - " Hermione panicked.

" - Don't worry," Draco cut in, almost laughing. Without Hermione's help, and although she found this to her worry, he fought and managed to stand up. Hermione embraced him quite long and once she broke away, she stared at Pansy's body where Blaise kneeled in front of her, Draco's gaze following her lead.

"Pansy...is she...?"

"I'm not sure," Draco told her worriedly. "A Death Eater fired quite a nasty blow at her, her body nearly fell down the entire hill but I managed to catch it and carry it up here."

"Will she be alright?"

"To be honest, I can't make sure of anything."

"And the Death Eaters...where are they?"

"After Pansy fell, I managed to bring out her wand and fire a couple of spells at them, all of them collapsed to the ground, I think I even killed one," Draco admitted, his voice slightly raspy in level. "But don't worry about them right now, they're ages below us, I reckon they're still knocked out."

"Draco, we have to tell the school, it's not safe..." Hermione embraced him again, her voice muffled from his clothes. He placed his hands on her shoulders and pulled her away slowly.

"You're right."

"Who should we inform first?"

Blaise picked up and threw Pansy's body over his shoulder, not showing any difficulty one bit. "I reckon you two tell Professor McGonagall, she'll know what to do about them. They might close up the school, even."

"What are you going to be doing with Pansy?" Hermione pondered.

"Take her to the hospital wing," Blaise groaned as if it was obvious. "Well, erm, if that's okay with you, Draco, of course..."

Draco nodded as he watched Blaise walk towards the giant oak doors as he carried Pansy and started his journey to the Hospital Wing where Pansy would be in care of Madame Pomfrey. Once Blaise was completely out of sight, the sky began to lose its sun and the dull blue was slowly replaced with different shades of orange, pink, purple and orange.

"...What about me? What do I do?" Daphne squeaked.

Hermione looked at Draco's face to see his response.

"Save yourself, do whatever the hell you want to do," Draco snapped, walking alongside Hermione as the two of them walked back towards the school. Daphne just stood there by the horses, stomping on the ground and scoffing several times in anger, throwing insults and blaming the horse as if it was at fault.

"Look at her, just_ look _at her," Hermione mumbled, but she was loud enough for Draco to hear. "...Um, Draco?"

"Yes?"

"You're not going to just let her die, are you? I mean, she's maddening and such, but to leave her there like bait?"

"Gods, no, she'll find her way out. I know she isn't _that _stupid. She's such a coward; she'll probably run back to the school in no time."

"I see?"

"Well, I might be wrong, you never know."

Once Hermione and Draco were back inside the school, there seemed to be more students within the castle. They had assumed they had left their Common Rooms for Dinner would be beginning soon, but the both of them did not even think about eating. Several students, as usual, stopped in their path to stare at the two of them, wondering where they have been. Everyone seemed to take notice of Draco's scratchy, damaged appearance, but he merely ignored them and even managed to pierce them with the gaze everyone knew he wore, for it recently returned.

Theodore Nott and Miles Bletchley ran into them as they were walking towards McGonagall's office.

"Crikey, Draco, what happened to _you_? Did you get attacked by _another_ Hippogriff again or something?" Miles asked a little too loudly, laughter ringing all over his voice. Theodore covered his mouth and tried to hold it back.

"Or did Granger punch you in the face again?" Theodore thought, his eyes rolling sarcastically.

"Shut it," Draco spat as he shoved them both to the side, out of their way. Hermione was furious at them as much as Draco was, but there was no need to talk. They faced the two familiar doors of McGonagall's office and when Hermione turned one of the knobs to the side, she was surprised to see it wasn't locked at this hour.

The room was dark, and there was no light except the dim candles that stood on her desk. Professor McGonagall wore her glasses and her cat-like eyes were racing on the surface of a book, reading very attentively. The sound of Hermione and Draco's footsteps seemed to finally tell her that she had guests in the room, so she snapped her book shut and sat up straight. She nearly fell backwards after taking sight of Draco.

"Mister Malfoy? Miss Granger?" she asked, clearing her throat.

"Professor, we're sorry to interrupt you, but there's something to tell." Hermione piped up, her voice bouncing off the office walls.

"Surely this can wait, Miss Granger?"

Hermione had a response ready to be given, but Draco placed his arm in front of Hermione to ensure he wished to speak. She let him.

"No, Professor, we wanted to inform you that there was an attack in Hogsmeade earlier this day," Draco replied smoothly.

"An attack?"

"Death Eaters, Professor," Hermione cut in. "I wasn't there, but after hearing from Draco, he informed that they had arrived when he was at the Three Broomsticks with Blaise and Pansy and - "

"Mister Zabini and Miss Parkinson were there? Who else was there when it happened?"

"Daphne Greengrass, Professor." Draco grumbled.

"Well, where are they? I must hear the story from all four if I am to believe you."

"Well...during their trip back to the school, a Death Eater fired a spell at Pansy and I'm not sure if she's still alive or not, and Blaise carried her up to the Hospital Wing a while ago. As for Daphne...she didn't want to follow Draco and I back into the school, so - "

"You two left Miss Greengrass outside? With Death Eaters in the area, you say?" Professor McGonagall was on the edge.

"I'm sure she'll be alright, she's probably within the school walls by now - " Draco started.

"Weren't any other students aware of the past happenings?"

"We haven't heard from any of them, actually." Hermione said, asking herself the same question. _What if some students' lives were given up as well as the townspeople?_

"Daphne probably ran off to tell someone already, who knows - " Draco tried to begin.

"No. No. You two hurry along and join Mister Zabini and Miss Parkinson in the Hospital Wing, I'll find Miss Greengrass and tell the staff what to do," she said hurriedly, leaving the office almost immediately, leaving Hermione and Draco in the faint light of the candles. They left shortly, blowing the candles out and closing the doors behind them.

"What do you think they'll do?" Draco asked Hermione.

"Dunno, maybe they'll gather the members of the Order and fight them off..."

The two of them had arrived at the Enchanted Staircase where students were present, and Hermione caught eye of Harry, Ron, Neville and Ginny descending from one of the stairs. Hermione would have tried to avoid them so Ron wouldn't start another pointless argument, but Hermione seemed to be unlucky, for the current staircase she and Draco were on had just shifted to Ron's.

Draco, Hermione, Harry, Ron, Neville, and Ginny all stopped on the same staircase, staring at each other awkwardly. Hermione felt her heart sink - it was as if they didn't know each other as well anymore. Ever since Draco came into the picture, she had been spending less time with them, less than the previous six years...

"...Excuse us," Ginny muttered fiercely, nearly shoving Draco away. Hermione watched Ginny stomp to the end of the staircase, Harry, Ron, and Neville all following her without a word. Neville smiled at her faintly, but they were all out of sight within moments and Hermione felt rather empty when it came to her closest friends. She could, still talk to them, but everything had changed. Nothing was the same.

"...Come on," Draco broke the silence, grasping Hermione's hand and guiding her to the Hospital Wing, after he had noticed her muted wonder.

When they finally took sight of the familiar doors of the Hospital Wing, they saw Madame Pomfrey desperately trying to shoo away a cluster of Slytherin girls, which was evidently the ring of Pansy's acquaintances. Although the girls groaned and refused to leave, Madame Pomfrey made them strut off within a couple of minutes. She looked at Hermione and Draco with such suspiscion.

"What, may I ask, is your business here?" Madame Pomfrey asked, her eyes trailing up and down as she observed Draco's appearance head to toe. "Mister Malfoy, would you like me to take a look at those wounds?"

"...No, I'm fine, we're here to see someone," Draco looked at Hermione and she returned the glance, nodding to seem believable. Madame Pomfrey raised an eyebrow.

"Surely Miss Parkinson has had enough visitors?"

"Well, he - ...was there, when it happened," Hermione pointed out casually, offering Draco a look.

"Then, Miss Granger, what is your business here?"

"Professor McGonagall ordered us to stay here."

"...I see. Very well then. You two will stay here with Miss Parkinson and Mister Zabini, and I'll be off to speak some terms over with Minerva. Understood?"

Hermione nodded and tried to grin, but couldn't. Once Madame Pomfrey had stepped away from the doors, Draco opened the door for Hermione, allowing her in first. They stepped into the familiar Hospital Wing they knew so well, looking around.

All the beds were completely empty except for the farthest one to the left, where Pansy lay in the bed. Blaise sat in a wooden chair aside the bed, his eyes raising up to Draco once he had made way in. He stood up and walked away from the bed towards the two of them, eyeing Hermione curiously. He tried to ignore the fact that Hermione was among them for reasons any of them did not know of.

"What are you doing here?" He asked Draco. "Did you tell McGonagall?"

"We did, and she's off to tell the staff and perhaps fetch Greengrass if she's still not bawling outside," Draco rolled his eyes at the thought of Daphne; he really did hate her though those exact words had never escaped his mouth to anyone. "She told us to come up here and check up on you two."

"Oh, about that..." Blaise answered, his voice worrisome.

"...Is she alright?" Hermione spoke out, not wanting to be left out of the conversation any longer. "Surely Madame Pomfrey can cure her?"

"...Well," Blaise replied, for he was now getting rather used to Hermione's company. He led them to Pansy's bed and they all looked at her pale face carefully; Blaise brushing a few bangs away from her face. No sound or any movement came from her body at all.

"Madame Pomfrey is not sure if she's alive. She tried hearing for breathing, but there didn't seem to be any of the sort heard, and she's not entirely sure," Blaise said, his face mellow. Draco and Hermione both stared at the silenced body of a girl they were so used to seeing complaining and jestering other people for her entertainment.

"And I thought no one could get as worse as Pansy when she was in her third year," Draco admitted, who now had Daphne to worry about. Blaise chuckled a little, and Hermione tried to join in the laughter, but couldn't. She did not feel worthy enough to be laughing when a possibly lifeless girl was lying in front of them.

"What are we going to do with her if she's..." Blaise stopped laughing.

"Do you think her parents know?" Hermione asked with guilt of strong curiosity.

"Dunno, she doesn't really write her parents and they don't really write to her," Draco said. "Her family had a dinner at my place once, and I must admit, they're not really the parents you would want to have."

"Oh..." Hermione was not sure of what to say next.

For a couple of more minutes Blaise and Draco were deep in conversation about the Parkinson family and about their visits to the Parkinson Estate, and Hermione did not admit that she had no interest to listen any further, but she stayed there for she did want to seem rude in front of them. At the moment she needed to know how Professor McGonagall and the rest of the staff would take care of the problem involving the Death Eaters. Maybe she didn't have to worry so much.

It was only moments later that Draco could read the look on Hermione's face so well. She was unoccupied with nothing to tell them, and he could see the anticipation rising in her eyes to see how the situation would be handled.

"Come on, Hermione, let's go," Draco stepped away from the edge of the bed and took Hermione's hand, gently dragging her to follow. Blaise stood from his chair in question.

"Where are you two going? You're supposed to stay here."

As Draco opened his mouth to speak to explain to Blaise that they found no more reason to stay, the doors of the Hospital Wing burst open and in came an utterly shocked Madame Pomfrey, whose face displayed absolute surprise. Her cheeks were wrinkled and her mouth was slightly ajar, her hands crossed over her chest and her head shaking as if she was thinking hard within a question.

"No, that's not possible," Madame Pomfrey placed her hand on her temple and shook her head vigorously, not approving of whatever she was reviewing about.

"What's the matter, Madame?" Hermione asked politely, not wanting to frighten her with the undefined crisis.

"I don't believe this..." She said rather sternly to herself as she walked over to the small table aside Pansy's bed and tamed the petals of the flowers that resided in the vase atop of it, obviously trying to distract herself from Hermione's question. It was definitely not too hard to notice at all. Blaise looked at her with an odd perspective, just as curious as Draco and Hermione were.

"Madame Pomfrey," Hermione began again nervously, not wanting to pressure her. "Is anything the matter?"

"...Where exactly," Madame Pomfrey had finished fixing the flowers in the vase. "Did you two leave Miss Greengrass?"

"By the horses, I reckon," Blaise said, walking over to where Draco was. "Why? Did anything happen to her?"

Madame Pomfrey bit her lip, something that students wouldn't normally see. She was, of course, a hard-working woman that had to deal with much crisis, but Hermione, Draco and Blaise had never seen her this nervous. Clearing her throat rather softly, she sat atop of the bed next to Pansy's and looked away from the gaze of the three students, still shaking.

"The staff couldn't find her anywhere. All we found by the two horses was her wand."

As much as the three of them loathed Daphne, as much as they wished for her to act for her own, as much as they wanted to_ never_ hear her voice again - they felt a wave of shock run through their insides, stabbing their insides. Hermione tried to register in her mind all the horrible things Daphne had done to ruin her relationship with Draco, but she, afterall, _was_ a student just like them...no matter how annoying she was.

"Where is she?" Hermione questioned Madame Pomfrey.

"The staff does not know," Madame Pomfrey responded, fidgeting.

"Do you think," Draco crossed his arms. "The Death Eaters might have taken her?"

"Possibly," Madame Pomfrey said in an undertone.

Draco shook his head in disgust and turned his back to everyone, but Hermione followed his movement and looked at him in the eye. There was no need for words, for Hermione could tell from his cold gray eyes Draco was thinking about his father. She placed her hand on his shoulder and snapped him back to reality, where Draco immediately turned back to everyone else and put all his thinking behind him. Blaise didn't say a word as his glance kept returning to Pansy's motionless body.

"...Well, its best you three head off to bed," Madame Pomfrey said fiercely, standing up with her eyes staring them right at the spot. "Now. Go."

"What about Pansy?" Blaise asked her.

"She'll be fine here, I might consider sending her to St. Mungos. Now go. Go!"

Hermione, Draco, and Blaise hurriedly stepped out of the Hospital Wing, not daring to say a word about the past events, for they felt like they have told the story one too many times. The sky outside was already nearing nightfall, and although neither of them felt even close to sleepy, they did not fuss to head over to the Common Rooms, ignoring everyone's desperate questions.

**

* * *

**

**...And that's it for this one. Thank you very much for reading. I do not know when I will next update once more (8th grade is about to start), but during the wait for the next update, I now have a link up to my other DracoHermione stories up on the links section of my bio called 'dhr100 fanfiction challenge'. These are very short fics (under 1000 words) that I will not put up here, so if you have time, please take a look and leave a comment. If you don't have a livejournal, it's fine with an anonymous comment. Leave a review and I'll see you soon!**


	31. Unforeseen Statements

**Hi, I deleted the author's note.**

**SORRY it took so long! School has already started and I've never been busier in my life with this fanfic, other fics, many fic challenges, art requests and homework to complete. Ugh. It has been excruciatingly tiring for the past few days. I know I will finish this fanfiction no matter what, but it's going to be a long, annoying wait for that. I really do miss the summer now, even if I barely did anything but use the computer. **

**Anyway, enough about me. Thank you for the supportive reviews and comments on my dhr100 stories. This took me _forever_ but nonetheless, here it is. Hermione tells the story. Please read and I hope you like it! (even if it is very short)**

_

* * *

Hermione

* * *

_

Not much talk about the past events have flowed through the school, unlike I expected. We were now officially finished with our N.E.W.T.s, I've done quite a fair job, though I can't say I'm satisfied due to recent stress.

Harry, Ginny and Neville have been piling me with endless questions about how and why Draco walked into the school with such a scratchy appearance, I refused to answer, and Ron had always found a way to avoid being stuck with them. The main reason I didn't spill out all the secrets was because I didn't want them to worry about the Death Eaters, especially Harry. That was the last thing we all needed.

I sat in my favorite red armchair by the fireplace, finally feeling comfortable after such a long time. Draco was lounging in the Slytherin Common Room, it was now a weekend, and I had just returned from lunch. Most of the Gryffindors were still down in the Great Hall, though few hung around the Common Room.

As for the other two Slytherin girls, Pansy had been sent to St. Mungo's. She had waken up from what seemed to be a coma a few days ago and needed special treatment. Daphne, however, still hadn't been found, and as much as I would find it shallow to think such a thing, I think I'd enjoy life with the thought that she would not be around for a while, for she was perhaps held with the Death Eaters. Now she can see the troubles Draco and I went through.

I've been trailing behind several things, which I am not quite used to. I've been finding less time to study, and I cannot recall the last time I've knitted elf hats. The poor things have been probably waiting days - _weeks_ - now...

"Erm, Hermione," a voice called out from the entrance of the Common Room, by the Portrait Hole.

I shifted my weight to the right of my armchair and turned around to face Ginny, who was not looking her happiest. Lavender and Parvati entered shortly behind her, giggling and sending Ginny straight to her last nerve. She shushed them determinedly without any hesitation whatsoever and I arose from the chair, walking over to her.

"What is it, Ginny?"

"He's waiting for you outside the Common Room."

"What? Who - Oh."

She nodded and swished her fiery red hair past me as she made her way to the Girls Dormitory, Parvati and Lavender loitering behind her, stopping a few times to see what would happen. I gestured them to leave and after Ginny ran back down the stairs and tugged them by the sleeves, they finally left. Making my way out of the Portrait Hole, I saw Draco standing in the middle of the corridor, hands in his pockets, glaring at the nearby Gryffindors awkwardly.

"Draco, what brings you here?" I approached him shortly and he seemed to snap out of his gaze.

"What, you busy?"

"No, just wondering. I thought you were in the Common Room."

"Apparently the questions being asked among the Slytherins was starting to piss me off, so I thought I'd have some time out of there. Take a walk around, shall we?"

"That's fine. Do you mind if we visit the Owlery first? I'm expecting a letter from my mother."

Draco did not say a word and took off and I followed behind him, not knowing what to say next. He was never the kind that was easy to read, it took some sort of skill that I have not mastered yet. There was just something about him today - perhaps - was it something I did? Through the entire seventh floor corridor he remained completely silent, not looking back at me once.

When we had stepped out of the school, it felt as if I hadn't felt the gush of wind in ages. Not much students were outside, a few were on their way back from the Owlery, and Draco and I walked up the steps as a couple of owls had only recently flew in. Feathers swayed in the still air and Draco came to a halt as he sat with both hands in pockets. Completely unsure what to say to him, instead I hurried along to a familiar brown barn owl, carrying a piece of white folded parchment.

I took the letter slowly from the owl's beak, which took quite a while. Managing not to get bit, the unmistakable cursive handwriting drew over the top folds of the parchment: _Hermione_.

It did not take me long at all to open the paper and read its contents. It started out as normal as every other letter I have recieved from Mum, but it didn't end as I expected it to. No. _No. _

Even reading it a hundred times would not help.

Unaware of the mess that resided on the floor of the Owlery, I couldn't help but let the piece of parchment sway back and forth, slowly making its journey down to the floor, dropped from shock. I stood there for a couple of moments, rethinking the letter's purpose, but their various sentences would not stop ringing in my head. The owl looked at the fallen parchment rather comically, but I did not even think about laughing.

Draco seemed to take notice of the abscence of the sound of fingers brushing on paper, and he turned around from his persistent gaze and walked over to where I was. His eyes trailed down to the paper that rested atop both of my shoes.

"What is it?"

I didn't answer, I couldn't answer. Already scenes of the future began to play over and over, and it was clear now that this year was meant to be rather unlucky for me. For the both of us. Draco bent over and picked up the paper, handing it to me. I let my hand out frustratingly and snatched it away a little too harshly, my head looming down so the only thing I could see was my shoes.

"Hermione. What's in that letter?"

"No...Draco...I'm...I'm sorry."

"For what?"

What was I supposed to say to _that_? Realizing there would be no harm rather than surprise in this act, I pressed away the folds on the letter so the writing did not seem smeared, leaned closer to Draco, and read it out loud. It said:

-

_My dearest Hermione,_

_I have not heard from you in a while. How is your seventh and final year at Hogwarts going? Your father and I are both very glad that you're receiving top marks and keeping up with your work, that's the best we could ever ask from you. We're impressed, as always. _

_Now, the purpose of this letter was to inform you about some recent desiscions and I apologize if I happened to shock you with the following news._

_Your father and I have been watching closely for any recent news from what you call the 'Ministry of Magic', but since we're what they refer to as 'Muggles' we have found it quite difficult. We have, however, been told personally from the Minister of Magic itself (Cornelius Fudge, am I correct?) about the past events with your encounters involving these 'Death Eaters', the first one occuring during Christmas time._

_And not only within the walls, but we have heard from him about happenings outside the school walls. You are in danger, Hermione, and there is one of the supporting facts that we have thought was the reason for these horrible events._

_During Christmas, your grandmother informed us not too long ago that you had a visitor during Christmas Break. You do know well that your Grandmother cannot see well if she doesn't wear her glasses, but I had asked her to describe the individual through her memory. He was described as tall, pale, and he had blonde hair. Now, I do not know his name, but I do remember laying an eye on him when he was in his younger years during our visit to Flourish and Blotts in your second year. _

_This boy, Hermione, is one of the greatest and most believable reasons you have been escaping these tragic happenings. Forgive me if I'm wrong, but something must be done, for your own good._

_Unfortunately, your father and I have decided to come back home with us and leave Hogwarts. Although your education is not finished yet, I have asked the Minister for books. I know your love for reading, so I take that won't be too much of a problem. Feel free to contact your friends, but I hope you understand the meaning of this final choice. This is merely for your own safety. _

_Hermione, I do hope you take this letter to your acceptance and please think about this before writing back. _

_Best wishes from both of us,_

_Mum and Dad._

-

Draco took the paper from my hands and read it to himself about twice before finally accepting the rushed facts from my parents. He looked at me with some doubt before folding the parchment back and handing it back to me. This was obviously not a good feeling.

"They're...taking you away from Hogwarts?"

I tried to look at him directly, but I couldn't. Biting my lip in lack of words, I shuffled my weight from one foot to another. "Seems so."

He was not impressed with this, and I understood every last thing there was to understand. This was just making it harder for Draco as well. What was I to do?

"Why the hell do these things always happen?" Draco snapped, crossing his arms and gazing out towards the school, pondering. He was mad, really mad. But I was afraid that there was nothing I could do about this - I've had many choices back then with all the past recent events, and Draco was always there to help me in times of need, but no, this was different. There was nothing I could do about this. There was nothing _anyone_ could do about this.

Running low in coherent thought and an explanation, I stood there, as if waiting for something to happen. Inside I felt desperate to rip the letter to pieces, throw it into the fire and watch the paper sink in the arms of the fire, but I controlled the frustration dwelling within. I could just see myself leaving Hogwarts - staying home all day, flipping through pages of a book, never to see Harry, Ron, or Ginny again. Never to see Draco, or anywhere else. I would be trapped in my own household.

"Draco...I'll try to talk to them and ask them about it," I had no idea what I was saying. There were no school holidays coming up and homework would start its accumulating process soon, and I really did hope I could keep to my statement. His face brightened up a little, in a way I haven't laid eyes on in so long.

There seemed to be no need of words as he nodded in such a motion I almost missed it, and took off without me. Once he was out of sight and I could just see him from afar walking back towards the school, I held the letter tightly in my hands before placing it in my pocket before walking down the stairs quietly. Draco was far ahead of me now as I watched him walk to the large oak doors of the school until I couldn't see him anymore.

How could my parents assume such a thing? This wasn't Draco's fault, he wasn't the one to be blamed...was he?**

* * *

**

**I am so sorry it wasn't long enough, thank you for reading it though. It's going to take forever for me to update again, so again I apologize. Please leave a review and I look foward to reading them. I'll try to make it longer next time, who knows...**

**PS - I know I've said this many, many times, but I really do not know when the story is coming to an end. I know where to take it, but I don't know how long it will take me to finish. I just want to thank those of you who stay tuned and taking the time to read this, really does mean a lot after all the months I've spent writing my first Dramione fic, I didn't know it would get this far. As much as I want to start this story all over again, I'll keep it going to the end. Thank you SO much. If I could write something for each of you individually I would, but I'm in far too many fic challenges for my own good. Thanks again, and bye.**


	32. Valediction

**Hello, I bring another update. Thank you for waiting, I'm quite sorry the updates are coming slower and slower. And I must inform you that most of the upcoming chapters are to be told in 3rd person, for I find it easier for me to write that way. I hope ocassionally Hermione and/or Draco will get to tell the story, but not as often as before (especially Draco). This chapter in particular is told through narration.**

**Again, thank you for the helpful reviews and patience. Please enjoy the chapter, like the last, it isn't that long. I do not know when I will next update, but hang in there, and please leave a review. (I am saying this now because there will be no author's note at the bottom) And I'm sorry to say that this isn't exactly happy for those who asked :(**

**

* * *

**A week passed. A little too quickly. 

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Ginny asked as she watched her snap her suitcase shut. She noticed that her hands were shaking slightly. "You know, you do have a say in this. Your parents aren't _always_ in charge."

Hermione let out a resentful sigh as she threw the end of her scarf over her shoulder. Ginny sat on top of her bed, watching her from across the dormitory, embracing her knees. She waited for her to say something.

"Look, Ginny," Hermione tried to break it to her calmly. "If this is what I need, and what my mum and dad _think_ I need, then I might as well listen. Yes, I might have a say in this, but this is final, Ginny. This is what needs to happen."

A pout crawled across Ginny's unsatisfied face.

"So is this really the last time you get to see Hogwarts? The last time you get to see this Dormitory, the last time you get to see everything?" She asked, her voice showing slight signs of worry. Hermione shrugged, barely wincing.

"Don't get me wrong, Ginny. I'll still be able to visit. It's just that...this school. I can't even think about how much I'm going to miss everything." Hermioine brushed her fingers on top of the deep crimson blankets of her bed, trying to take knowledge that this will clearly be the last time she would be able to.

"Maybe we should do something," Ginny suggested, her cheeks suddenly gaining its color and excitement. "All of us. I don't know, something to make your last day here have some importance. You can't just leave us, you know."

"Oh, Ginny. You know I want to, but I'm leaving in about an hour, and I need that time to just spend my last few moments here." Hermione replied sadly. "I'm sorry I spoiled all your plans. It would have been fun."

"I guess that's fine," Ginny ran her fingers through her hair, rather guilty. "How are you leaving?"

"There's a different train on Hogsmeade Station I'm taking back to Kings Cross. The ride will take the entire day, then my mum and dad will drive me home from there. Then...I guess that's it."

Ginny did not look pleased. She curled her lips thoughtfully as she helped Hermione bring her belongings downstairs to the common room, placing it on the floor by Hermione's favorite armchair. Hermione allowed her body to sink into the soft cushions, taking in yet another unhelpful sigh. This was, after all, the last time she got to sit here.

The early lights in the fireplace danced across her chocolate brown eyes, reflecting them so that a slight trace of amber shone in them. She stared at it, a million thoughts rushing through her head simultaneously.

Some students were up early, some of them unwilling to talk to Hermione, knowing she needed her silence. Parvati Patil and Lavender Brown didn't bother speaking to her, for they had already caught the hint that she did not wish to. From the staircase leading to the Boys Dormitory, Harry and Ron creeped down the stairs quietly, not wanting to startle her.

Ron, plucking up his feeble courage, spoke to her first, his face merely inches away from her own.

"Mione?"

Hermione's eyes still remained on the fire, refusing to look away. Harry stared at her attentively, for it was his turn.

"Hermione? Are you okay?"

At that instant Hermione's senses stopped playing tricks on her and she snapped back into reality. Ginny elbowed Ron as if telling him not to push her too hard, but Ron didn't care. He placed a hand on her shoulder, and felt her warmth sink deep into his cold palms.

Hermione brought her hands to her face so that no one could see the horrible mess when it came - no, she shouldn't cry, she couldn't cry - this was, after all, for her own good. She would be sent home, away from the danger, away from all the dilemma. How could she be so selfish? Her toes curled in her socks, almost painfully, as she could feel the eyes staring at her.

"...I'm sorry," she replied weakly, her lips pursed. "It's just...so many things have happened. And I'm just going to leave everything as a memory."

Harry and Ginny smiled at her a bit, trying to bring back the happiness in Hermione.

"Why don't we all go down to breakfast?" Ron suggested, quite eager that she was speaking to him now. He waited for her expression.

"...Yes. Breakfast sounds nice." Hermione helped herself up as she slipped her socks into the pair of black shoes she always wore, picked up her suitcase and led Harry, Ron, and Ginny to breakfast.

As they made their way down the Enchanted Staircase, she looked around at each and every one of the students. They wore their school robes, the House colors flourished greatly among the stone steps, and she looked down upon herself. Plain old muggle clothes. As if her school robes were speaking to her, she could feel them as they lay folded inside the suitcase that was gripped tightly in her hands.

The Entrance Hall carried a sweet aroma of cinnamon and bread. Hermione looked up at the tall, arch-like doors, as the enchanted ceiling looking down at them mimicked the weather outside, cold and empty, as if the sky was just waiting to torment her.

She did not dare look at the table that roamed with colors of green and silver. Even from the corner of her eye, she did not catch his presence.

They all took their seats, welcoming the idle plates of crumpets and goblets of pumpkin juice. Hermione was the first to take a sip, remembering that there was no other place in the _world_ that served pumpkin juice as delicious as this.

Harry and Ron definitely did not know where to start. The only one with tricks up her sleeve would be none other than the lively Ginny Weasley.

"So, Hermione, any plans for today before you have to go to Hogsmeade station?" she asked, clearly without a care in the world. Harry nearly spilled his pumpkin juice in astonishment to Ginny's straightfoward statements, but Ron did not keep his eye off Hermione to see her reaction.

"I don't know. It's still pretty early but I'd like to come down to Hogsmeade now and wait until the train comes. We can spend some time in Honeydukes while we wait."

Ginny's cheeks tinted pink as she beamed, and Harry let out a sigh of relief. Ron grumbled under his breath.

"It's on me, then," Ron finally spoke out, folding his arms across his chest.

Hermione's eyes widened.

"Oh, Ron, just because I'm leaving doesn't mean you have to spend every Galleon on me," she said in response sheepishly, rather calm now that he had offered.

"If he had any Galleons in the first place," Ginny remarked, able to disguise her laugh in a giggle. Harry joined in for the slight amusement as Ron did not make a comment. Hermione watched his face carefully and realized he rather meant it.

"But if that's what you fancy, I'm fine with what you wish." Hermione flashed him a quick smile, and Ron was unable to stay locked within her gaze permanently as he looked away, distracting himself as he watched two other students come down to join them.

Neville, looking as sleepy as ever, claimed a seat next to Ron. Luna Lovegood, not minding that she should be over where the Ravenclaws were, stood behind them as she waved a quick hello to Harry, Ginny, Hermione and Ron.

"Hermione," Luna spoke out in her dreamy voice, her misty eyes curious. "I heard that you were leaving Hogwarts."

"You've heard correct," Hermione said. She wasn't surprised. Ginny must have spread the news as a reasonable first guess. A partial amount of happiness on Luna's face was wiped away within seconds, her lips folding into a slight frown.

"That's too bad," she said with pity. "I've finally heard from my father who is visiting Sweden. He found traces of a Crumple Horned Snorkack at last, and I wanted you to be one of the first to hear all about it."

"Er, thanks for that Luna, I do appreciate it," Hermione stuttered, unsure of what to say as she raised the corners of her smile to give Luna a small grin. Ron rolled his eyes and turned back to his plate to continue eating, and it was only moments later that Luna had announced to them she would be in Hogsmeade before them to give Hermione her final goodbyes.

The thought that this was the last time made Hermione shudder.

"Anyone still hungry?" Neville asked broadly in the awkward silence after Luna had left. Harry dropped his fork and shook his head as he was one of the first to stand up from the table. Ginny followed and turned to face Hermione.

"Well?"

Hermione snapped out of her unlikely dreamy state and rapidly got out of her seat, her hands folded across her chest nervously, before letting her response out.

"Shall we?"

The five students filed out of the still relatively empty Great Hall and before it could get out of sight, Hermione turned back to look up at the lofty enchanted ceiling for one last time. She took a deep breath, and decided to let it go. She had caught up with the rest of her friends as they walked through the large oak doors at the front of the school. Hermione felt her fingers brush on the texture of the doors, her fingers reading what had been her memories.

Immediately the cold wind outside slapped their faces and brought a little color into their cheeks. Ginny ran over to huddle close to Harry for the sun did not seem to be awakening any time soon. Several birds traced the clouds across the pearly gray sky as the sounds of the morning brought music to their ears. They were a fair distance away from the school, until Hermione tugged Ron on his sleeve and turned around. Everyone stopped and turned to look at her.

She looked back at the school, even from a distance still feeling small compared to its enormous size. Thousands and thousands of memories spoke back to her and dared her to regret leaving; to feel the familiar rush of excitement as she ran back inside the large oak doors. But Hermione didn't listen, instead, she turned back and Ron followed her, dead in silence.

There were no carriages out in the front so it wouldn't take long for them to walk as a group. Within thirty minutes they found themselves on the road of the peaceful town, sweet smells arising from the chimneys and various muttering from the lively crowd around them. Hermione's spirits lifted as she saw that the town was quite active, it would've been a shame if the energy hadn't sprung into its residents quite yet.

Hermione did not mind Ginny taking the lead as she watched her eagerly walk into Honeydukes. Children tugging their mother's sleeves zipped into the store before her, their eyes lightening up from the sight of a new type of candy being displayed behind the windows. As soon as Hermione was within the walls of Honeydukes, she could not feel any more appreciated. The colorful aisles of candy heartwarmingly welcomed her, from the Chocolate Frogs to the Blood-flavored lollipops; from sweet to sour. Harry and Ron bought themselves a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans since they were there, while Neville seemed to be rather fascinated with the color-changing taffy. Ginny approached Hermione, a piece of candy already in her mouth.

"What's the matter? Aren't you going to get anything?"

She shrugged before her eyes skimmed toward Harry and Ron.

"No, I'll have to save some money to buy something to eat on the train anyway. I'll just have some of what Harry and Ron are having."

Ginny nodded her head and spun around, beginning to make her way back to the cash register, until a tall, slim and familiar figure approached them. Hermione let out a somewhat frustrated sigh, Harry, Ron, and Neville had approached to the scene in no time.

"So it's true - you're really leaving, aren't you?" Blaise questioned, a bag of candy in one hand, the other placed firmly in his pocket.

"Save your breath, Zabini, I think she knows," Ginny snapped, stepping foward in front of Hermione.

"I didn't ask you, you filthy blood traitor," he threw at her, his mouth forming into a devilish grin as he saw her flinch to his insults. Ginny ignored his remarks.

"Shouldn't you be up at the school, anyway?" she spat, flipping her fiery red hair over her shoulders, her eyes as fierce and serious as she could show him.

"Whatever, I owe Theodore something, anyway," Blaise threw in carelessly before he stepped away from Ginny and faced Hermione. "So why the sudden return to the Muggle world? Miss your parents or something?"

"...It's none of your business," Hermione rushed in, her nose flaring and eyebrows forming furrows.

"Anyway, why should I care?" Blaise began to walk away from them and he was now leaving the door propped open, leaning against the wall. "Draco's the one that should be worried."

He closed the door, and Hermione pretended she did not hear his last statement.

Harry took notice to the frustration and anxiety strewn across Hermione's face, and tapped her on the shoulder. Hermione's eyes turned to meet his, and hers did not look satisfied at all. Harry felt his heart sink as he knew what would happen next.

"Classes will start in about half an hour, Hermione, what time is your train leaving?"

"Eleven-thirty," she spoke curtly. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, it's eleven twenty," Ron said through a mouth full of candy, his eyes on the clock on the wall. Neville's hand reached in to get his share.

Hermione's eyes widened.

Instantly Hermione ran out of the door with the rest of them on her tail, pulling her scarf out of her face as the wind grew stronger as she ran through the crowd. People she passed by and pushed away were throwing some angry comments at her, but she could not have cared less. She couldn't be late, she couldn't stay here any longer, it was time for her to leave and put it all behind.

At the train station, Hermione turned in her train tickets at the stand and sat on a bench, waiting for what would be only a few minutes. Harry and Ron stood beside her, while Neville and Ginny claimed a seat on both sides of her. Hermione's case of belongings sat idly on her lap. From here, they could all see Luna running towards them from the direction in which they came from, an envelope tightly clutched in her hands.

"I'm sorry I'm late," she said breathlessly once her voice had come within range.

"That's fine, the train won't leave for a couple of minutes," Hermione added. "What's that you have in your hand?"

"I've brought you something."

She held out the envelope to Hermione, and without any further ado, Hermione took hold of it. When she began to unfold the creases of the envelope and unseal it, Luna's icy fingers stopped her own.

"Later," Luna whispered. "When you're on the train. When you can't see Hogwarts anymore."

Hermione's heart sunk as if it were whimpering.

"Okay, thank you for this," she tried to smile, her voice beginning to quaver.

"Oh, and one more thing," Luna spoke with a louder voice than intentioned, which seemed to catch everyone's attention. "I think he needs one last talk with you, before you leave, I mean."

"What?"

"Over there," her index finger pointed to a figure in the distance by the station, their head drooped down low and hands in their pockets. Hermione could not see their face, but she recognized them immediately.

"...I'll be right back," Hermione placed her case on her seat and she walked towards the figure slowly, already feeling the brittle cold.

He stood without taking a single look at her, but he could hear her coming closer. She paced herself, she did not want to come up too fast or too slow - this had to mean something, this had to be etched in Hermione's thoughts until she was sure she would lay her eyes on his face again. But for now, this was for the best, for the both of them.

Now she could see his face, and Hermione inhaled the scent of his graceful cologne.

And he spoke first.

"Trust me on this; this isn't your fault, it never was your fault," he spoke through unmoving lips, and she felt like she had not heard his beautiful voice in ages. "Now I know there is nothing we can do about it, nothing _anyone_ could do about it, but just listen to me this once. Don't feel like a failure. You shouldn't - there is nothing to blame yourself for. I don't want you going through what I've been experiencing all this week, I just want you to happy."

Hermione did not know what to say. Maybe she didn't have to respond with words, for they seemed to be the most painful thing at the moment. Instead she jumped off her feet and opened her arms, catching his body and reminding him that he was hers and only hers.

"Draco, I'm sorry I have to do this, I - "

" - Don't," he cut in. "...be sorry."

He brought his palms to cup her face in his hands, shortly allowing one of his hands to wander off and slide into her hair, his fingers exploring every inch of her locks, her scent everywhere and captivating him so quickly. Hermione stood there, frozen, almost afraid to make a move to interrupt their moments of ease. She pressed her cheek onto his chest, her hands clutching his shirt.

After silence fluttered over them and left, Hermione decided to speak again.

"Will you...ever speak to me again?"

"Do know that is what I want," he replied smoothly, his chin now resting on top of her head. "But I can never be sure."

Hermione felt a heart-wrenching desire to keep him here, holding her forever. But she couldn't, this wasn't fair. Nothing was ever fair, the train guard stepped out in front of the steps to announce the train would be leaving in a minute.

"You should get going," Draco spoke flatly but meaningfully. "It'll be easier."

She knew that it would only trouble the both of them more if she argued, refused - denied to leave, but she did not want to listen. Was this all that today had to offer to her? Was this what her years led her to as a finale?

"What surprises you more," she murmured, finally managing to smile. "The fact that I might never see you again or the fact that I'm not denying to anything you say?"

He grinned.

"You can call it a tie."

Hermione brought herself in his arms again and took in one last whiff of his cologne before she reached up, standing on her toes, locking glances with those dazzling slate grey eyes, and brought his lips to hers. It only lasted for a few moments, but Hermione couldn't ask for more. She didn't want to feel selfish after everything that those amazing years had given her.

The guard blew his whistle as a final warning, and Ginny called out to her.

"HERMIONE! Your case!"

She turned to look up at Draco's eyes to see if he would approve of one interruption, and he nodded. Not wanting to waste any more time, Hermione ran to where everyone else was and took hold of her suitcase, her legs burning in the inside, contrasting to the cold weather circling them on the outside.

"I'll miss you," Ginny nearly knocked her over in a hug as she could feel her tears seeping into her clothes. Hermione embraced her back, as everyone else approached her to give her their goodbyes.

"It's been great, Hermione, thanks for being there," Harry pulled her into a one-armed hug and flashed her a smile. "Couldn't have done anything without your help."

"Thanks," she replied. "Thank you...everyone. I don't think there would ever be anyone to replace any of you."

"We can say the same about you," Neville added, and tears began to slide down Hermione's cheeks. Tears of relief.

Luna pulled her into a heartwarming embrace, and when it came to Ron, Hermione stood on her toes - Ron was already _so_ tall - and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. Ron's hand traced up to where Hermione had kissed him and his fingers stayed there, as if in a trance-like state. Hermione couldn't help but let out a giggle.

"Goodbye, Ronald. I'll definitely miss you."

"I doubt you will, Ginny will probably be nagging me to call you everyday," he chuckled and Hermione decided it wouldn't hurt to join in. Everyone did.

"Be sure to," she put in.

The train's wheels started moving, and Hermione jumped on top of the trains' steps, door still open. She looked back at the reason she was alive - everyone she loved had stayed by her side. Her hand waved as the train began to move away very slowly.

Looking away from her friends for only a moment, she caught Draco's eye. Something was in his hand, and as if it were in her natural instinct, caught it in her hands when he threw something she must have forgotten back at Hogwarts.

"I'll see you soon, Hermione."

And then they slowly faded away to the point where Hermione pressed her face on one of the windows, her breath fogging up a corner, the snowglobe held in her hand and speaking its own stories.


	33. A Lame Author's Note

**Hey, guys. **

**It's been long. _Too_ long...**

**So you're probably wondering - why am I here with a lame author's note and not a new chapter? Why is it already 2007 and there still isn't an update? What happened to my constant submissions and e-mail replies on and such? And where, _where_ is the Dramione-centric Roanne we have all grown to know and read from?**

I know it sounds like I'm totally abandoning this story, but let me tell you, I'm not. **Although I want to stab this story a million times **and I regret starting it in the first place, I promise I won't simply just throw it away because I'll probably regret doing that too. So as long as it takes me to update this story, whether it takes months, I will try my hardest to finish it.

And, if I'm giving you the impression that I've ran away from the whole fanfiction-writing business, I apologize. Actually, I have still been active in the whole entire Harry Potter fandom, especially the fanfiction world. Yes, I know, I _know_ you've heard me countless times going on and on about these fic challenge communities I'm in on Livejournal, but the only reason I've been keeping up with those and not this story is **because they're much easier for me**. I have to say, I'm terribly stuck on this story.

I had the plan for the next chapter instantly after I submitted the previous, but now, I don't even remember half of it. It's going to take a while until I recollect all of this information, and I must apologize a million times again to say that there's going to be an even longer wait. I just hope that submitting this author's note will get me in gear to re-read the whole story over again and come up with something new for the next installment.

Also, no, I did not bail out on the whole world of Dramione either - I know for the past few months I've been a faithful Dransy shipper but Dramione does have its own little place in my heart! Besides, if I wasn't into them anymore, would I still have this story up:)

**So I'm so sorry that I am such a slow fanfic writer, and I definitely cannot thank all of you enough for hanging in there! **

**Much Love,**

**Roanne (Feel free to contact me in any way you wish for information)**

OTHER NOTES: Seriously, if I get myself into this, and if I'm back into my normal routine of updating fics, I will try to finish this story before _Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows _comes out on July 21, 2007. I know you all have taken it to your knowing that this story will not run along the lines of where Book 6 left; AKA the whole RAB thing and everything else involving the horcruxes and the prophecy. See, that's where I made my mistake. I SHOULD HAVE NEVER WRITTEN A SEVENTH YEAR FIC, GRR. Especially because this is the first Dramione fic I have ever written in my life and it came out of nowhere. Bleh. But I'll do it because it will make me happy once I finish it, and because it would have been worth the struggle.

Thank you, thank you for all your wonderful support. If you can, please let me know that you have read this (I'm not asking you to review because that would be really cheap of me, but in any way possible, please do so)


End file.
